Life After Love
by Zanessalover576
Summary: Zac and Vanessa had been broken up for three years. Zac has been going through a lot and is on the road to a bad life path. Can someone who was once the closest to him be the one that helps him receive the help he deserves?
1. They Try To Make Me Go To Rehab

It had been seven years since the last installment of High School Musical premiered and a lot had changed. The cast had gone there separate ways and started working on their own projects. The separation had also driven apart Zac and Vanessa, who had been dating since the start of it all. The pair broke up and lost contact. Vanessa had a new boyfriend named Austin and they had been dating for three years and were currently living together. They had met through Ashley Tisdale, Vanessa's best friend. The couple had moved in together and everything seemed perfect.

"Hello? Babe, I'm home" Austin said as he closed the door and walked into the house.

Austin walked into the house and went into the kitchen and saw his girlfriend drinking a cup of coffee.

"Hey, how was your shoot?" Vanessa asked as she kissed her boyfriend's lips.

"Fine, the magazine should be out in about a month" Austin said.

"I'm looking forward to seeing these pictures" Vanessa said.

Austin kissed Vanessa's lips again.

"I was walking down the street and I saw a magazine that caught my eye. I think you should take a look" Austin said.

Austin handed Vanessa the magazine. She looked at the front cover "Zanessa speaks out". Vanessa looked up at her boyfriend.

"What is this?" Vanessa asked.

"I read the article and it gave your reasoning behind the breakup" Austin said.

Vanessa's eyes widened. She had totally forgot that she talked to a reporter.

"Oh" Vanessa said.

"Are you okay?" Austin asked.

"Yeah, I just don't want this to be brought up anymore. We haven't talked since we broke up" Vanessa said.

Austin smiled slightly.

"Vanessa. Baby, listen to me. I know that he is a sensitive subject for you and I'm sorry for bringing it up. This conversation is forgotten okay. We won't talk about it anymore" Austin said.

Vanessa's phone rang. She looked at the caller ID.

"It's Ashley" Vanessa said.

"Go talk to her" Austin said.

Vanessa answered the phone.

"Hey Ash" Vanessa said.

"Hey have you seen the magazines everywhere?" Ashley asked.

"Yeah, Austin just brought one home" Vanessa said.

"Are you okay? I will bring wine and cheese over if you aren't" Ashley said.

Vanessa giggled.

"I just don't want to bring it up anymore. We have moved on" Vanessa said.

"Good for you honey. Starla called me today" Ashley said.

"Why?" Vanessa asked.

"Zac has been going through a lot and his parents want him to go to rehab but he won't go. Starla wants to give him an intervention. She asked me to be involved" Ashley said.

"Well, you are one of his best friends. I think you should do it for him" Vanessa said.

"She also mentioned that she wanted you to participate as well. She thought that if you were the one to say something then he would do it" Ashley said.

"Ash" Vanessa started.

"Nessa, listen to me. I understand you both broke up and lost contact. But you are the one thing that can talk him into making a good decision. Starla knows that and so does everyone else" Ashley said.

Vanessa closed her eyes and sighed.

"Can I talk to Austin about it and get back to you?" Vanessa asked.

"No, because you will forget that this conversation even happened. Bring Austin into the room and put me on speaker" Ashley said.

Vanessa sighed. She pulled away from the phone and put it on speaker.

"Babe?" Vanessa called.

Austin came into the room.

"What's up?" Austin asked.

"Ashley needs to discuss something with us" Vanessa said.

"Hi Austin" Ashley said.

"Hey Ash, what's up?" Austin asked.

"So I got a call today from Zac's mom. He's in really bad shape and his family is trying to get him to go to rehab but he won't go. They want to stage an intervention and want me and Nessa to participate. I told Vanessa about this and she said she needed to talk it over with you but I know that she will forget about it because it's about Zac" Ashley said.

Austin looked at Vanessa. Vanessa looked at Austin.

"Why can't you just be the one to participate? Why do they want Nessa to be involved?" Austin asked.

"His mom wanted her to because she was always a person that he could come to when he needed help. She thought that if Vanessa said something then he would get the help that he needs and go to rehab" Ashley said.

Austin looked at Vanessa.

"Babe, I think you should do it" Austin said.

"What?" Vanessa asked.

"You may be the only person that could get through to him" Austin said.

Vanessa sighed.

"Okay I will do it" Vanessa said.

"Good. Can you call Starla and tell her please?" Ashley asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"Alright. I love you. Don't worry. Everything will be fine" Ashley said.

"Love you too" Vanessa said.

The two women hung up the phone. Vanessa looked at her boyfriend.

"Why am I am a good person?" Vanessa asked.

"Because you have a good heart and you care about other people. Everything will be fine. If it doesn't work out, at least you can say that you tried" Austin said wrapping his arms around his girlfriend and kissing her cheek.

Vanessa nodded.

"I have to call Starla" Vanessa said.

"Alright. I'm going to go to the gym. I love you" Austin said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said kissing Austin's lips.

Austin left the house. Vanessa took a deep breath and dialed her once "second mother's" number. She waited for someone to answer the phone.

"Hello?" Starla answered.

"Starla- I mean Mrs. Efron. Its-" Vanessa started.

"Vanessa Anne Hudgens. Mrs. Efron is David's mother. How are you sweetheart?" Starla asked.

Vanessa's eyes filled with tears.

"I'm okay. How are you?" Vanessa asked.

"I'm hanging in there honey. What's going on?" Starla asked.

"Ashley called me and told me about Zac and how you wanted to plan an intervention for him" Vanessa said.

"Nessa honey, if its too hard on you, I don't want you to do it" Starla said.

"No, I want to do it. I want him to get the help that he needs" Vanessa said wiping a tear that was falling from her eye.

"I'm proud of you Vanessa. I wanted to do it next week. Is that okay?" Starla asked.

"Yeah, that's fine. Are you going to come down here or is he going to go up to San Luis?" Vanessa asked.

"He's coming up here. I wanted to have you, Ashley, Dylan, and David and I to come in one by one and just talk to him" Starla said.

Vanessa nodded.

"Alright. I will see you then" Vanessa said.

"Vanessa, even though you both are broken up, you are still my daughter and I love you very much" Starla said.

Vanessa smiled slightly.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

The two women hung up and Vanessa released all her tears that she had been holding in. A week later, Vanessa woke up and got ready to drive up to San Luis for Zac's intervention. She picked up her keys and walked into the bedroom and kissed Austin's lips.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too" Austin said.

Vanessa left the house and drove to San Luis, where Zac's parents lived. Starla had texted her as she drove to let her know what time to come to the house. Vanessa pulled up to the Efron home and sighed.

"It's now or never. Face your fear" Vanessa told herself.

Vanessa got out of the car and texted Starla to let her know that she was there. David, Zac's father, opened the door before she could ring the doorbell. He smiled at the woman that he knew so well. Vanessa hugged her once"second father".

"It's good to see you. Thanks for coming" David said.

"It's good to see you too. How's it going in there?" Vanessa asked.

"Ashley is talking to him now. Dylan talked to him earlier and we just talked to him. Now it's your turn" David said.

"Does he know I'm here?" Vanessa asked.

"No. We didn't tell him because we didn't want him to make an excuse and try to get out of this. He's done with giving excuses" David said.

Vanessa nodded. David opened the door and tried to listen and see if Ashley had finished talking. He closed the door.

"It's your turn Nessa. Good luck" David said kissing her cheek.

Vanessa smiled. She walked into the house that she once knew and memories flooded into her head. Vanessa walked into the living room, where she saw Starla and smiled.

"He's taking a break. He will be back in two minutes" Starla said hugging Vanessa.

Vanessa nodded.

"You are doing a good thing, honey" Starla said kissing Vanessa's cheek.

Vanessa walked over to two chairs that were set up and sat down in one. She took a deep breath. Vanessa heard footsteps and her heart felt like it was going to jump out of her chest. Zac came back into the living room and his eyes widened.

"What's going on?" Zac asked.

"Honey, you need to listen to what she has to say" Starla said putting a hand on her son's shoulder.

Zac sat down in front of Vanessa. Vanessa took a deep breath.

"Hi" Zac said.

"Hi" Vanessa said.

"What is this all about?" Zac asked.

Vanessa's eyes filled with tears.

"Zac, you know I care about you right?" Vanessa asked.

"That's debatable but okay" Zac said.

"Zac" Starla warned.

"I want you to get the help you need because people should be able to see the funny, happy, loving, and talented man that you are. Drugs and alcohol aren't the answer to your problems and they shouldn't be your therapy either Zac" Vanessa said.

"Why should I listen to you? You left me" Zac said.

"Zac, I know you better than anyone else. I want you to be happy and healthy. Just because we aren't together anymore doesn't mean that I don't care because I do. If you want to ruin your life and the career that you have worked so hard for, then by all means, go ahead. But I am telling you that when you do that-" Vanessa stopped and released the tears that she couldn't hold in anymore.

Zac tried not to show any emotion to Vanessa crying.

"If you don't get help, I swear to God I will never talk to you or communicate with you ever again. It kills me to know that you are like this" Vanessa cried.

"I don't need your help" Zac said.

"If you don't need my help, then do whatever you want. I can't do this, Starla. I'm sorry. I have to go" Vanessa said getting up and walking to the front door.

"Nessa wait!" Starla said running after Vanessa.

Vanessa walked out of the house. Starla took Vanessa into her arms.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't get through to him" Vanessa said.

"Hey, at least you tried honey. You faced your fear by coming up here and talking to him" Starla said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I should be getting home. I just need some time to think" Vanessa said.

"Alright. I love you Vanessa. Never forget that okay?" Starla said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

Vanessa walked to her car and started driving home. She knew that she had tried to get through to Zac but she felt horrible that her efforts didn't work. Vanessa was pulled out of her thoughts when she pulled into the driveway of her home. She got out of the car and realized that she was crying. Vanessa unlocked the front door and walked into the house. She went into the kitchen where she saw Austin cooking. He looked at her.

"What happened baby?" Austin asked.

"I tried to get through to him. I tried to make him go but he won't listen" Vanessa said.

Austin opened his arms and Vanessa walked into them. He kissed her head softly and rubbed her back as she cried.

"It's not your fault" Austin said.

"It feels like it" Vanessa said.

"It's not Nessa. You tried to get him some help and he refused. There's nothing else you can do for him now. The ball is in his court. He needs to make the decision to get help" Austin said.

Vanessa nodded and sniffled.

Go take a hot shower and get into her comfiest pajamas and relax okay?" Austin said.

"Okay" Vanessa said quietly.

Austin kissed Vanessa's lips softly. Vanessa walked upstairs and went into the bathroom. She hoped that Zac would make a good decision and get the help that he needs.


	2. It's Not Your Battle, It's Mine

The next day, Vanessa woke up and looked at the clock which read eleven forty-five. Her eyes widened. She got up and walked downstairs and went into the kitchen and found Austin sitting at the table.

"Good morning" Austin said.

"Morning baby" Vanessa said as she walked over to her boyfriend, wrapped her arms around him and kissed his lips.

"Are you feeling better?" Austin asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"I'm just frustrated that's all" Vanessa said.

"I know. You need to let him choose his own path. It's not your responsibility to choose it for him" Austin said.

"Yeah I know" Vanessa said.

Vanessa's phone rang and she picked it up and looked at the caller ID which read Zac.

"Hello?" Vanessa answered.

"Hey, it's me" Zac said.

"Hi" Vanessa said.

"I wanted to apologize about yesterday. I was rude and all you wanted to do is help me" Zac said.

"I accept your apology" Vanessa said.

"I also came to a decision. I want to go to rehab and therapy and get my life back to where it used to be" Zac said.

"I'm glad that you want to work on yourself" Vanessa said.

"Then you and I could be together again like old times" Zac said.

"No Zac" Vanessa said.

"No what?" Zac asked.

"We aren't getting back together ever. I'm with someone. Don't do this rehab and therapy thing just to try and get me to come back, because I won't" Vanessa said.

Zac sighed.

"Then why are you helping me?" Zac asked.

"Because I don't want you to ruin your life" Vanessa said.

"Alright. I guess I will talk to you soon then?" Zac said.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

The pair hung up. Vanessa looked at Austin.

"He thinks that if he goes to rehab and sobers up that we will get back together" Vanessa said.

Austin sighed.

"Babe, come here" Austin said.

Vanessa walked over to her boyfriend, who offered his lap to her. Vanessa wrapped her arms around Austin's neck.

"I know that you want Zac to go on the right track. I get that and I understand that he means so much to you because of your past. But throwing yourself into helping someone isn't going to be positive until they want the help. You are being really sweet for trying to help him but he doesn't sound like he's ready for help" Austin said.

"He told me that he wants to go to rehab and therapy" Vanessa said.

"I know he did but saying one thing and actually doing it are two different things" Austin said.

Vanessa sighed and looked into her boyfriend's eyes.

"I love when you know exactly what to say when I need it the most" Vanessa said.

Austin smiled. The phone rang. Vanessa looked at the caller ID and saw Starla. She picked up the phone.

"Hey Starla" Vanessa said.

"Hi honey" Starla said.

"What's going on?" Vanessa asked.

"Zac called and told me that he apologized to you and told you that he wants to go to rehab" Starla said.

"Yeah, that's what he told me. He also said that he wants to go to therapy" Vanessa said.

"He's really motivated to get sober and get help. He told me an angel came and laid down the law" Starla said.

Vanessa laughed.

"Well, an angel that is with someone. Starla, he thinks that if he goes to rehab that we will get back together" Vanessa said.

"Honey, there are a lot of things running through his head. You came and talked to him, he's thinking about rehab, and he's just really trying to figure out his life. Don't get offended by it. He's just saying a lot of things because he hasn't talked to you in almost three years" Starla said.

Vanessa nodded. The two women talked for a little while longer until they hung up. Vanessa looked at Austin and sighed.

"I can't deal with any of this right now" Vanessa said.

"Then don't. Just relax" Austin said.

"He doesn't want help and then he does. He calls me every five minutes just to make sure I answer the phone. Oh my god, I'm going to go crazy" Vanessa said.

Austin walked up to Vanessa and kissed her shoulder.

"Babe, let it go. Give me your phone and get ready for the day" Austin said.

"If he calls please don't answer it" Vanessa said.

"Stop worrying. Go upstairs" Austin said kissing Vanessa's lips.

Vanessa left the room. Her phone rang as soon as she was upstairs. Austin looked at the caller ID and saw Zac's name. He took a deep breath and answered the phone.

"Hello?" Austin answered.

"Uh hey. I'm trying to call Vanessa but I think I dialed the wrong number" Zac said.

"No you have the right number. Zac, you need time to heal. The best thing for you to do is to go to rehab. Vanessa is throwing herself into trying to help you. She shouldn't have to because she's not with you anymore" Austin said.

Vanessa walked into the room and saw Austin on her phone.

"Austin" Vanessa said.

Austin looked at Vanessa and knew that he was in trouble.

"Zac, you need to get some help" Austin said and hung up.

Vanessa looked at her boyfriend.

"What did I do?" Austin asked.

"You answered my phone after I told you not to. Don't do that" Vanessa said.

"Babe, I was only trying to help" Austin said.

"You don't know Zac. You don't know that I have been put through hell with him. You don't get that. I want to handle this on my own because I know how to deal with him and I know how to help him. So please stay out of this" Vanessa said.

Vanessa walked out of the kitchen and went upstairs. She closed her bedroom door behind her and locked it.

"Why are you doing this to me Zac?" Vanessa asked herself.

There was a knock on the bedroom door.

"Nessa, can I come in?" Austin asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said unlocking the door.

"Are you okay?" Austin asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"I'm sorry for answering the phone. I just wanted to help, that's all" Austin said.

"I know you were just trying to help. I'm just stressed with all of this" Vanessa said.

Austin walked into the room and sat down on the bed next to Vanessa.

"But you don't have to be babe. I was just trying to get you to see that Zac is his own person. He is going to do what he wants. I get that you want to help him but he needs to make the decision to help himself" Austin said.

Vanessa nodded.

"So what should I do? How should I go about this?" Vanessa asked.

"Discuss with him how you feel again. Tell him what you think he should do and make it clear that by getting help it doesn't mean that you guys are getting back together" Austin said.

"Maybe I can get him to go to lunch with me and we can talk then. What do you think?" Vanessa asked.

"Try it and see if it works" Austin said.

"Okay. Thank you for letting me cool off" Vanessa said.

Austin opened his arms. Vanessa moved into them.

"I love you and I will always be here when you need to talk. Even about things about Zac" Austin said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said kissing Austin's lips softly.

"Go call him and tell him your plan" Austin said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Vanessa walked out of the room and called Zac and told him to meet her for lunch the following day. The next day, Vanessa got up and took a shower. She put on light makeup and got dressed. Vanessa looked at the clock which read eleven and walked downstairs.

"I have to go meet Zac. Wish me luck" Vanessa said.

Austin kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"Love you, be careful" Austin said.

"I love you too. I will" Vanessa said.

Vanessa left the house and drove to the restaurant. She parked her car and walked into the restaurant and looked for Zac. Once she found him, Vanessa walked over to the table and sat down.

"Hi" Vanessa said.

"Hey" Zac said.

"How are you?" Vanessa asked.

"I'm alright. You said that you wanted to talk. What's up?" Zac asked.

"So you know how when I said that I think you should go to therapy and rehab?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah" Zac said.

"Have you thought about it?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah I have. I want to get back to my old self. Before the fame, before all the success, I want to be me again. I know that I have led you to believe that I will flake and not go, but I want to change. I don't want to be known as another "Disney Star that went wrong". I want to work on myself and get better" Zac said.

"I am glad that you want all of that. But I also don't want you doing those things for the wrong reasons" Vanessa said.

Zac looked at Vanessa confused.

"What are the wrong reasons?" Zac asked.

"I don't want you to go to rehab and therapy to try and get back together with me. I don't want you to do that" Vanessa said.

"I don't want to do that. I think the best thing is to get my mind back to where it belongs and so the old Zac can come back" Zac said.

"When are you going to go to rehab?" Vanessa asked.

"I looked at some places this morning and found one in Malibu. It's away from everything and it sounds like the programs that they have will really help me get my life back. I start on Monday. It's a six week rehab and detox" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I'm proud of you Zac. For making this decision and wanting to get your life back on track" Vanessa said.

"As weird as this will sound, you are the one who I should be thanking. You came up here and talked some sense into me and made me see what I was doing and what I needed to do to change it. So thank you" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"You are very welcome. You know that I would never want to see you go downhill. Just because we aren't together, doesn't mean we can't be friends right?" Vanessa said.

"The friends part we can work on. I don't think your boyfriend wants us to be friends" Zac said.

"Why do you say that?" Vanessa asked.

"Because he's your boyfriend, Van. We were together for five years. You don't think that he doesn't want us around each other?" Zac asked.

"He just doesn't want to see me get hurt. That's all" Vanessa said.

"You know that I would never hurt you" Zac said.

Vanessa looked down at her hands.

"Intentionally" Zac added.

Vanessa looked up.

"I just don't want you to make the wrong decisions for yourself. If you did, that would hurt me" Vanessa said.

Zac and Vanessa talked for a little while longer until they both decided that they should go. They went their separate ways. Vanessa got into her car and started driving home. She dialed Austin's number on the way.

"Hey how did it go?" Austin asked.

"He looked at rehabs and starts one on Monday" Vanessa said.

"That's great news" Austin said.

"Yeah, I'm happy for him" Vanessa said.

"Are you on your way home?" Austin asked.

"Yeah, I will be home in ten minutes" Vanessa said.

"Alright" Austin said.

Vanessa pulled into the driveway and got out of the car. She walked into the house.

"Babe?" Vanessa called.

"In the living room" Austin said.

Vanessa walked into the living room and sat down on the couch next to her boyfriend.

"Hi" Vanessa said.

"Hi, so he starts his program on Monday?" Austin asked clarifying.

"Yeah. It's a combined rehab and therapy program" Vanessa said.

"How long is it?" Austin asked.

"It's for six weeks" Vanessa said.

"It will be good for him" Austin said.

"Yeah. I hope that he will be able to keep his sobriety and just better himself" Vanessa said.

"I hope so too" Vanessa said.

A couple weeks later, Austin had left to film a TV series in New York. Vanessa had been home alone and was currently working on some new music. One day her phone rang. Vanessa looked at the caller ID, which didn't say a name. She picked up her phone.

"Hello?" Vanessa answered.

"Is this Vanessa Hudgens?" a woman asked.

"Yes, who is this?" Vanessa asked.

"Vanessa, this is Nicole from Shields Treatment Center. I'm calling on behalf of Zac Efron" the woman said.

"Hi" Vanessa said.

"The therapist that Zac is working with thought it would be beneficial if you came in to the treatment center to talk to her. She thinks it would help her gain a better understanding of everything. Would you be okay with this?" the woman asked.

"Yes" Vanessa said.

"The therapist's name is Dr. Amy Bradley. When would you be willing to come in?" the woman asked.

"I can come tomorrow" Vanessa said.

"Okay, I will let Dr. Bradley know and we will see you tomorrow" the woman said.

"Alright" Vanessa said.

Vanessa hung up the phone. She was going to see Zac for the first time since he entered rehab. She had hoped that he was making some positive changes that could help him in the future. The next day, Vanessa drove to the treatment center and parked her car. She walked into the center and went to the front desk.

"Hi I have a meeting with Dr. Bradley" Vanessa said.

"Alright. You can go on in" the receptionist said.

"Thanks" Vanessa said.

Vanessa's heart was pounding out her chest. She walked down the hall and found Dr. Bradley's office.

"Hi Dr. Bradley, I'm Vanessa" Vanessa said.

"Hi Vanessa. Come in" Dr. Bradley said closing the door behind her.

"How's Zac doing?" Vanessa asked.

"He's doing well. As of right now, he is clean and he is in therapy three times a week" Dr. Bradley said.

"That's great" Vanessa said.

"Yeah. I wanted to call you in today because I know that you both are close and I wanted you to participate in one of his therapy sessions with me. Is that okay?" Dr. Bradley asked.

"Yeah, that's fine. Does he know that I'm here?" Vanessa asked.

"No. I will go get him and bring him back here" Dr. Bradley said.

"Alright" Vanessa said.

Dr. Bradley left the room. Five minutes later, the door opened and Vanessa looked up and smiled when she saw Zac, who looked a lot healthier.

"Hey how are you?" Vanessa asked hugging Zac.

"I'm getting there. How's everything with you?" Zac asked.

"Fine" Vanessa said.

Zac sat down next to Vanessa.

"Zac, I hope you don't mind that I invited Vanessa to participate in one of your therapy sessions. I thought it would be beneficial for the two of you to really connect " Dr. Bradley said.

"No I don't mind" Zac said.

"When Zac first came to treatment he had said that he wanted to detox and be sober because was going through a lot in his life. He mentioned that you were both in relationship for five years. Can you tell me about it?" Dr. Bradley asked.

"We were living together and everything was great between the two of us. The reason why I broke up with him was the fact that we couldn't go anywhere without girls throwing themselves at him. They would chase him and do stuff like that. We couldn't just go out. I get that it comes with the territory of being famous and all of that, but I felt like it was taking over and the Zac I knew started to disappear" Vanessa said.

"It got too much for you to handle" Dr. Bradley said.

"Yeah. He still means a lot to me even though we aren't together. Our friend was the one that had told me to go see him because he was going through all of this stuff and thought that I could help him" Vanessa said.

"When you found out what was going on, how did you feel?" Dr. Bradley asked.

Vanessa's eyes began to water. She sniffled.

"I was upset like any person would. I was hurt that he would do that to himself and I didn't want him to go through that" Vanessa said.

"Zac, when Vanessa came to you and told you to get help, how did you feel?" Dr. Bradley asked.

"I got angry and didn't want anything to do with her or therapy" Zac said.

"Was it because of the breakup? Is this what this is all about?" Dr. Bradley asked.

"I got angry because I had no communication with Vanessa for three years and when this all happened, she magically appeared. When this first happened, she wasn't there. She found someone else. I didn't know whether I could trust the fact that she still cared and that's why I acted the way I did when I first saw her at my parents house" Zac said.

"Your parents still have contact with Vanessa?" Dr. Bradley asked.

"Yes. My parents and brother do" Zac said.

"Did that make it harder for you when you were going through the breakup?" Dr. Bradley asked.

Zac nodded.

"Do you think you both will ever be friends?" Dr. Bradley asked.

"It's up to Vanessa. I would like to be but the decision is up to her" Zac said.

"Vanessa, can both be friends?" Dr. Bradley asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

Dr. Bradley smiled.

"Good. Thank you for coming to meet with us, Vanessa" Dr. Bradley said.

"No problem" Vanessa said.

Zac and Vanessa walked out of Dr. Bradley's office.

"Can we go and talk somewhere?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah" Zac said.

Vanessa followed to the pool where there were a bunch of tables surrounding it. The two adults sat down.

"How are you feeling after that?" Vanessa asked.

"I feel like I finally got to tell you how I really feel and felt about everything. I feel like I have a weight lifted off of my shoulders because I was able to say how I felt" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"I'm glad that you got everything off your chest. It's only going to get better" Vanessa said.

"Thank you for coming up here and meeting with Dr. Bradley with me. I know that it was hard to do" Zac said.

"I just want you to be healthy Zac. I know that a lot of what you have gone through is because of what happened between the two of us" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"And I feel responsible for letting you go down this road. If I had tried harder to make it work between the two of us then this wouldn't have happened" Vanessa said tearing up.

"Van, this isn't your fault. Never blame this on yourself. This is my doing. I did it to myself" Zac said.

"But had I stayed after we broke up, I still wouldn't have let you go through this" Vanessa said as she choked up.

"Hey, come here" Zac said.

Zac and Vanessa got up. Vanessa walked over to Zac and hugged him. He rubbed her back as she cried and continuously apologized to him.

"Don't apologize Van. This isn't your battle, it's mine" Zac said.


	3. I Never Stopped Loving You

That night, Vanessa drove home and parked her car in the driveway. She got out of the car and walked into the house.

"Austin?" Vanessa called.

"Living room" Austin said.

Vanessa walked into the living room and sat down on the couch next to her boyfriend.

"How did everything go?" Austin asked.

"He looks a lot healthier. Therapy was interesting. A lot was said and I think that we can call each other our friend" Vanessa said.

"That's great" Austin said.

Vanessa looked at Austin.

"What's wrong?" Vanessa asked.

"Nothing" Austin said.

"Babe, tell me what's going on. I know you and I know when something is bothering you" Vanessa said.

Austin took a deep breath and released.

"Are you considering getting back together with him?" Austin asked.

Vanessa's eyes widened.

"What?" Vanessa asked.

"I'm serious. Are you considering it?" Austin asked.

"No. I'm not. We spent way too much time apart and I love you" Vanessa said.

"I just feel like this whole thing is going to make someone get hurt" Austin said.

"Austin, I don't have feelings for him" Vanessa said.

"Are you sure about that?" Austin asked.

"What's wrong with you?" Vanessa asked.

"Nothing. What's wrong with you? A couple weeks ago you didn't even want to be near him let alone talk to him Vanessa. Now, you spend every waking moment with him. How am I supposed to react to having my girlfriend hang out and be with her ex all the time?" Austin asked.

There was a moment of silence.

"Maybe we need to just take a break" Austin said quietly.

Vanessa had tears running down her cheeks. Austin went upstairs and packed some of his belongings in a suitcase and came downstairs. He picked up his keys and was about to leave when he heard Vanessa.

"Austin, I love you" Vanessa cried.

"I'll let you know when I am coming back" Austin said leaving the house.

Vanessa sobbed into the pillow that she was holding. An hour later, Vanessa's cries had finally subsided. She picked up her phone and dialed Ashley's number.

"Hey Nessa" Ashley said.

"Ash, he left me" Vanessa said.

"Who did?" Ashley asked.

"Austin" Vanessa said.

"What? Honey, I am on my way" Ashley said.

The two women hung up. Ten minutes later, Ashley opened the door with her spare key and walked into the living room.

"What happened?" Ashley asked.

"The whole Zac and I hanging out thing and how I am trying to help him got too much for Austin and he got upset and left" Vanessa said.

"Are you guys broken up?" Ashley asked.

"He said that we need to take a break. I don't know what to do Ash" Vanessa said.

"There isn't much you can do. Just let him cool off. What happened with Zac today?" Ashley asked.

"I went to therapy with him" Vanessa said.

"How did that go?" Ashley asked.

"It was fine. A lot was said and I think we can call each other a friend" Vanessa said.

"Good. Go upstairs and take a nap. Just chill and relax okay?" Ashley said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

"I'll let myself out. Call me if you need anything" Ashley said.

"Okay. Thanks Ash" Vanessa said.

"No problem" Ashley said.

Vanessa walked upstairs and went into the bedroom. She lied down and fell asleep. A couple hours later, Vanessa woke up and sighed. She walked downstairs and started making dinner for herself. Vanessa's phone rang. She walked over to it and looked at the caller ID, which read "Mom". Vanessa answered the phone.

"Hi mom" Vanessa said.

"Hi Van, how are you?" Gina asked.

"Austin left me" Vanessa said.

"Why? What happened?" Gina asked.

"He left me because I have been trying to help Zac get back on track" Vanessa said.

"Van, he probably felt weird that you and Zac started talking again" Gina said.

"Maybe. If he feels that way, then I don't want to be with him. Zac is always going to be a part of my life" Vanessa said.

"So what are you going to do?" Gina asked.

"I am going to go up to San Luis" Vanessa said.

"To visit Zac?" Gina asked.

"Yeah. I want to just hang out and see how he is doing" Vanessa said.

"Didn't you just see him earlier?" Gina asked.

"Yeah, but I am going to go spend some time with him" Vanessa said.

"Alright honey" Gina said.

The two women hung up the phone. Vanessa picked up her purse and left the house. She got into her car and started driving. An hour later, Vanessa pulled up to the rehab and parked her car. She got out and walked into the rehab and went to the front desk.

"Hi, I'm here to visit Zac Efron" Vanessa said.

"Are you related to him?" the receptionist asked.

"I'm a friend" Vanessa said.

"Alright, go on back" the receptionist said.

Vanessa walked down the hall to Zac's room. She saw that the door was open and politely knocked. Zac looked up and smiled.

"Hey" Zac said.

"Hey" Vanessa said.

"Are you okay? You were just here this morning" Zac said.

"Not really but we can talk about that later. How are you doing?" Vanessa asked.

Zac motioned for her to sit down. Vanessa sat down in a chair that was next to Zac's bed.

"I'm doing okay. I'm a little anxious and depressed but I'm okay. What's wrong?" Zac asked.

"Okay, don't get angry but Austin left me when I came home from visiting you" Vanessa said.

Zac sighed.

"Are you okay?" Zac asked.

"I don't know" Vanessa said.

"I'm so sorry Van" Zac said.

"It's okay. I just don't know how to move forward" Vanessa said.

"If you don't mind me asking, why did he leave?" Zac asked.

"He left me because I started talking to you again and spending time with you. Don't think it's your fault, Zac because it's not" Vanessa said.

"I didn't mean to get in between you guys" Zac said.

"You didn't. I did this to myself" Vanessa said.

"Why did you feel that you needed to tell me?" Zac asked.

"Because I trust you and you always know how to calm me down in any situation" Vanessa said truthfully.

"Let me ask you a question and don't get mad okay? Do you still have feelings for me? Be honest" Zac said.

Vanessa looked down and then looked up at Zac, with tears in her eyes.

"Yes. Those feelings never left. Yeah we have been broken up for three years but I still love you and I know that you probably don't have feelings for me anymore-" Vanessa started.

Zac got up and walked over to Vanessa.

"What are you doing?" Vanessa asked.

"Come here" Zac said.

Vanessa stood up. Zac walked closer to her and hugged her close. Vanessa wrapped her arms around Zac's waist. Zac put his hand on Vanessa's head. He kissed her head softly. Zac pulled back so he was looking at Vanessa in his arms.

"Van, I still have feelings for you too and I never stopped loving you. I just don't think that you should be telling me all this information right now. You are really upset and are going through a breakup" Zac said.

" It doesn't matter if I am going through a breakup or not. My feelings for you are real" Vanessa said.

"So what is the next step?" Zac asked.

"The real question should be, what do you think should be the next step?" Vanessa asked.

"Do you want to try and start dating again?" Zac asked.

"I will try if you try. I just don't know how I will be able to handle all the girls that throw themselves at you all the time" Vanessa said.

"Don't focus on them. Just focus on us. They aren't with me. I love them, yes in the sense of that I am blessed to have supportive people that like my work. But you, I love you on a different level. There is no comparison. So can we do that? Just focus on us, don't worry about them" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"So then are we back together?" Zac asked carefully.

Vanessa nodded. Zac smiled.

"Can I kiss you?" Zac asked.

Vanessa giggled.

"Do you really have to ask?" Vanessa asked pulling Zac in and kissing his lips softly.

Zac pulled back and put his hand on Vanessa's cheek.

"I love you. I have been waiting to say that for three years" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

"So besides coming here to get back together, why are here?" Zac asked.

"I just wanted to see how everything was going" Vanessa said.

"Everything's fine" Zac said.

There was a knock at the door and a nurse, who had brown hair and was probably in her mid -thirties came into the room.

"Zac, here are your vitamins and anti-depressants" the nurse said handing Zac a small cup with pills in it.

Zac opened his mouth and popped the pills into it and drank a sip of water. He looked at Vanessa and smiled.

"Hi, I'm Amy, Zac's nurse" Amy said.

"Hi, I'm Vanessa, his girlfriend. How's he doing? He says he's okay, but from a medical standpoint, how's he doing?" Vanessa asked.

"He's doing well. He is completely detoxed right now and is going to therapy three times a week" Amy said.

"I met with the therapist and she said the same thing. That's great that he's doing so well. I'm really proud of him" Vanessa said looking at Zac.

Zac smiled.

"Thanks babe" Zac said.

"Zac, I just need to take some blood and you will be good for today" Amy said.

"Alright" Zac said putting his arm out.

Amy took Zac's blood and then left the room.

"Can you go walk around the facility or are you supposed to stay in here?" Vanessa asked.

"I can go and walk around. Do you want to?" Zac asked.

"Sure, if you want to" Vanessa said.

Zac took Vanessa's hand and entwined their fingers together. The couple walked out of Zac's room and went down the hall.

"So do you like the program that you are in here?" Vanessa asked.

"I feel like it's helping. I'm starting to see the things that I want to keep in my life permanently and the things that I don't" Zac said.

"Are you glad you came?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah, without it, I don't know where I would be" Zac said.

The couple walked outside and sat down at a table.

"Have you talked to your mom?" Vanessa asked.

"No, I feel like I disappointed her in a lot of ways and I feel bad about it" Zac said.

"But you are doing great babe. I know that she is proud of you" Vanessa said.

The couple talked for a little while longer until Vanessa knew that she to be getting home.

"I have to get home and beat the traffic" Vanessa said.

"Alright. Drive safely. I love you" Zac said kissing Vanessa's lips.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

Vanessa left the rehab facility and started driving home. She called Ashley once she got into the car.

"Hey how are you?" Ashley asked.

"Zac and I got back together" Vanessa said.

"What?" Ashley asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"What made you get back together?" Ashley asked.

"I never stopped loving him" Vanessa said.

"And he never stopped loving you" Ashley concluded.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"What about Austin?" Ashley asked.

"I will pack his stuff up and tell him to come get it because I'm done" Vanessa said.

"Okay" Ashley said.

"Are you on your way home?" Ashley asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

Ashley and Vanessa hung up. Vanessa drove home and packed all of Austin's belongings. She dialed Austin's number and waited for him to answer.

"When are you going to pick up your stuff?" Vanessa asked.

"My stuff? What do you mean? I thought this was a break" Austin said.

"Well, I have decided that I can't do this anymore with you. So, when are you going to pick up your stuff?" Vanessa asked again.

"I'll be right there" Austin said.

Vanessa hung up the phone. Ten minutes later, Austin opened the front door.

"Van?" Austin called.

"I need your house key too. Your stuff is all packed" Vanessa said.

"Why are you doing this?" Austin asked handing the key to Vanessa.

"Because I love someone else" Vanessa said.

Austin picked up his stuff and left the house. Vanessa sighed in relief. Vanessa's phone rang and she looked at the caller ID, which read "Mom".

"Hi mom" Vanessa said.

"Hi honey, how are you?" Gina asked.

"Fine, I broke up with Austin and kicked him out of my house" Vanessa said.

"Why? What happened?" Gina asked.

"I got back together with Zac" Vanessa said.

"Really?" Gina asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"Is he out of treatment?" Gina asked.

"No, he's going to be there for five more weeks" Vanessa said.

"Well, I'm happy for you" Gina said.

"Thanks mom" Vanessa said.

The two women hung up. Vanessa walked upstairs and got into bed. She was really happy that she and Zac had gotten back together and that everything was going well. Vanessa fell asleep with a smile on her face.


	4. Good Days and Bad

A week had gone by and everything had seemed great for Vanessa and Zac. Zac was doing exceptionally well in rehab and was receiving every type of therapy treatment that was offered to him. Vanessa would visit him every day. One day, Vanessa walked into the waiting room of the rehab and went up to the desk.

"Hi I'm here to see Zac Efron" Vanessa said.

The nurse, who had recognized her from previous visits, let her go back to Zac's room. She had also started walking down the hall.

"How's he doing today?" Vanessa asked.

"He's having a rough day" the nurse said.

Vanessa stopped walking and looked at the nurse.

"What happened?" Vanessa asked.

"With treatment, the patients will have good days and bad ones. Since he still is detoxing, he's very up and down. Today, he's on one of his down days" the nurse said.

"Is he upset?" Vanessa asked.

"He's just frustrated" the nurse said.

"Alright. I am going to go see what's going on" Vanessa said.

Vanessa continued walking down the hall until she got to Zac's room, which was dark. She turned on the light.

"Baby?" Vanessa called.

"Turn the light off please" Zac said with his back to Vanessa.

Vanessa turned off the light and walked over to Zac's bed and sat on the edge. She put her hand on her boyfriend's leg.

"Zac, how are you doing today?" Vanessa asked.

"My head is throbbing and I am very anxious" Zac said.

"Look at me, please" Vanessa said.

Zac turned over and looked at his girlfriend and saw that his eyes were bloodshot and had dark circles around them and he was sweating.

"Have you been sleeping?" Vanessa asked.

Zac shook his head.

"Every time I close my eyes I can't fall asleep. I had an anxiety attack earlier" Zac said.

Vanessa smoothed her boyfriend's sweaty hair back.

"How's your anxiety now?" Vanessa asked.

"Better. I had to go see Dr. Bradley and she calmed me down" Zac said.

"All of this is normal. I talked to your nurse and she said it was. Once you are fully detoxed, then all of this will go away okay?" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"I'm sorry if this scared you" Zac said.

"Don't worry how I feel. I want you to be okay. If all of this is going on, you need to get the right help" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

When did this all happen?" Vanessa asked.

"It started this morning and just progressed" Zac said.

"Alright. I want you to get some rest okay? Just relax and get some sleep. Do you want me to stay here until you fall asleep?" Vanessa asked.

"Yes please" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said as she moved so Zac's head was lying on her chest.

Zac entwined their fingers together. He kissed Vanessa's hand softly.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too baby" Vanessa said.

"I can't wait to go home and get out of here" Zac said.

"I can't wait for you to come home too" Vanessa said.

Zac started to fall asleep. He kissed Vanessa's hand again.

"I think I'm going to fall asleep" Zac mumbled.

"Okay honey. I love you. Sweet dreams" Vanessa said kissing his lips softly.

"I love you too" Zac mumbled.

Zac fell asleep. Vanessa walked quietly out of the room and went down the hall. She left the rehab and drove home. Vanessa parked her car in the driveway and walked into the house. Her phone rang and Vanessa looked at the caller ID which "Starla". She smiled and picked up her phone.

"Hey Starla" Vanessa said.

"Hey there. How's it going?" Starla asked.

"I just came back from visiting Zac" Vanessa said.

"How's he doing today?" Starla asked.

"He's having a rough day" Vanessa said.

"What happened?" Starla asked.

"He's detoxing so basically his emotions and everything are very up and down. The nurse told me that it was normal. He didn't sleep last night" Vanessa said.

"Poor baby" Starla said.

"Yeah, that's what's going on with him" Vanessa said.

"Thanks for the update Nessa and for taking care of the situation" Starla said.

"I did it because I love him and I want him to be healthy and happy" Vanessa said.

"Is he up for visitors?" Starla asked.

"I would hold off on going to go visit. He had told me when he first started rehab that he felt like he disappointed you. I think that once he's in a better state, then you could go visit. He's just up and down right now" Vanessa said.

"I'm not disappointed in him. I'm disappointed in the choices he made" Starla said.

"I am too. I think he's just thinking a lot about everyone and how they feel about the situation" Vanessa said.

"Yeah. Let's just hope this never happens again" Starla said.

"I will make sure of it" Vanessa said.

Starla and Vanessa talked for a little while longer until they both hung up. The next day, Vanessa woke up to the sun streaming through the window and onto her face. She opened her eyes and got out of bed and walked into the bathroom and took a shower. Twenty minutes later, she came out of the bathroom and walked downstairs and grabbed her purse and left the house. Vanessa drove to the treatment center and parked her car. She walked into the lobby and smiled at the receptionist, who now knew her by name. Vanessa walked down the hall and saw Zac's nurse.

"Is he feeling any better today?" Vanessa asked.

"He's having a good day. He's much happier and more talkative" Amy said.

"Good" Vanessa said.

Vanessa continued walking down the hall until she got to Zac's room. She knocked on the door and poked her head in. Zac looked at Vanessa and smiled.

"Hi baby" Zac said.

"Hi. How are you?" Vanessa asked.

"I feel a lot better than yesterday" Zac said moving over in bed so Vanessa could lay down next to him.

Vanessa lied down next to Zac and kissed his lips.

"That's great babe. Did you sleep last night?" Vanessa asked.

"A little. It was on and off. But it's better than before" Zac said.

"Good" Vanessa said.

"Thank you for coming. I know what you are going to say but I want to thank you anyway. Hanging out in a rehab isn't the best" Zac said.

"Wherever you go, I go" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

"I had therapy today" Zac said.

"How did it go?" Vanessa asked.

"I set some goals for the future" Zac said pulling out a piece of paper.

"What are these goals?" Vanessa asked as she snuggled into Zac's side.

Zac looked at the piece of paper.

"Dr. Bradley wanted me to come up with some personal, occupational, and mental goals for myself. She told me to write as many as I wanted to in each category" Zac said.

"What did you write down?" Vanessa asked.

"For my personal goals, she had told me that it could anything but what I came up with was ideal for myself. First off, I want to apologize to my mom because I know that this whole thing has been hard on her. Secondly, I want to continue working on our relationship and eventually want to go to the next level" Zac said.

"The next level? What are you talking about?" Vanessa asked.

"You are the love of my life Van. I could never picture my life without you. Eventually, when we improve our relationship, I want to marry you" Zac said mumbling the last few words but Vanessa heard them loud and clear.

"Oh Zac" Vanessa said breathlessly.

Zac looked at Vanessa embarrassed by his personal idea. Vanessa kissed Zac's lips softly. Zac pulled back and smiled. Vanessa moved back into her original spot.

"Okay, what are the other ones?" Vanessa asked.

Zac continued to discuss his goals with Vanessa. Vanessa couldn't have been prouder to hear all that Zac wanted to accomplish.

"I'm really proud of you baby" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Thanks Van. It's only a couple things but at least it's something" Zac said.

"Yeah, and you can add and eliminate goals as you go to better fit your needs and wants" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"I talked to your mom" Vanessa said.

"You did?" Zac asked.

"Yeah, she wanted to come visit you. I told her to hold off for a little bit until you were okay" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Is she upset with me?" Zac asked.

"No baby. I told her what you had said and were concerned about and she said that she isn't disappointed in you. She's just disappointed in the choices that you made to get to this point" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"Come on, you need to get up and start moving around" Vanessa said taking Zac's hand.

"Mm..Nessa. I don't want to" Zac said whining.

"Zachary David Alexander Efron, you get that cute little butt out of that bed now" Vanessa said.

Zac sighed. He threw the covers off of him and stood up carefully. The couple walked out of the room and went down the hall to the tables where they had always hung out at.

"See doesn't that feel better?" Vanessa asked as she moved a stray hair away from Zac's face.

"Baby, I'm on a detox. I don't feel very good" Zac said.

Vanessa sighed.

"What would you like me to do?" Vanessa asked.

"Just stay with me" Zac said.

"Okay, let's get you back to your room" Vanessa said.

The couple walked back to Zac's room. Zac got back into bed, closed his eyes and sighed.

"Are you okay?" Vanessa asked worriedly.

Zac opened his eyes and smiled.

"Baby, come here" Zac said.

Vanessa walked over to the bed and sat on the edge. Zac took her hand in his.

"I'm okay. I promise. This whole detox thing is just wearing me out a little bit that's all. Don't worry okay?" Zac said.

"I'm going to worry because I want you to feel okay" Vanessa said.

"I know and I am really thankful to have a loving, sweet, and beautiful girlfriend that cares so much" Zac said kissing her knuckles.

Vanessa smiled. She leaned over and kissed Zac's lips.

"And I'm thankful to have you even though you get into trouble" Vanessa said.

Zac laughed.

"I have four weeks left. Four weeks until I am hopefully going to come home clean" Zac said.

"You better come home clean" Vanessa said.

"I will baby" Zac said.

The couple talked for a little while longer until Vanessa could see that Zac was getting tired.

"Get some rest babe. I'll come back tomorrow" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded tiredly. Vanessa kissed Zac's lips and left the rehab center. Four weeks later, Zac was released from the rehab facility and was currently resting and recovering at home. He was so happy to be home. Vanessa had moved Zac's stuff back into her house so that when he was released he didn't have to do it. One day, Zac came downstairs and walked into the living room and saw Vanessa sitting on the couch, looking at her phone. Zac sat next to her and sighed.

"Hi baby, how was your nap?" Vanessa asked looking at her boyfriend.

"I slept all day and still feel tired" Zac said rubbing his eyes.

"The nurse said that was normal. You are going to feel like that for a while until all of the medication is out of your system" Vanessa said.

Zac sighed.

"Did you talk to your mom?" Vanessa asked.

"Not yet. I don't know how to start that conversation. Do I just say I'm sorry?" Zac asked.

"Why don't I invite your family over for dinner? That way it will be less awkward" Vanessa said.

"Okay" Zac said.

Vanessa leaned over and kissed Zac's lips. Zac wrapped his arms around Vanessa and kissed her back. The couple pulled back and just rested in each other's arms.

"How are you feeling?" Vanessa asked softly.

"A little anxious but okay" Zac mumbled.

Vanessa kissed Zac's cheek softly.

"If you start feeling a lot of anxiety when your parents are here, let me know and I will get them to leave okay?" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"Go take a shower and get dressed. I'll call your parents" Vanessa said.

"Okay" Zac said.

Zac got up and walked upstairs. A couple hours later, the doorbell rang. Vanessa walked over to the front door and opened it. She smiled when she saw the Efron family.

"Hi guys" Vanessa said.

"Hey sweetie. How's Zac feeling?" Starla asked as the family walked into the house.

"He's doing well. He's a little anxious but he's okay" Vanessa said.

Zac came downstairs and saw his family. Starla smiled when she saw her son.

"Hi mama" Zac said hugging his mother.

Starla kissed Zac's cheek.

"You look really good Zac. How are you feeling?" Starla asked.

"I feel alright. I'm just trying to get back into my daily routine" Zac said.

"Are you in therapy?" Starla asked.

"No" Zac said.

"You don't think you need to have a therapist just in case?" Starla asked.

"I haven't thought that far ahead. I just came home. I need to breathe a little" Zac said.

Starla sighed. Zac walked outside to the backyard and sat down on a chair. He sighed. Zac knew that he needed to have family around him but he wanted to make the right decision for himself and not do what people thought that he needed. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard the back door open. Starla walked outside and sat down next to her son.

"Are you okay?" Starla asked.

"Yeah, I'm just thinking" Zac said.

"I heard that you have been doing a lot of that recently" Starla said.

Zac nodded.

"Rehab gave me a lot to think about. I'm sorry for putting you through what I have" Zac said.

Starla's face softened.

"Zac" Starla started.

"No, I have put you through hell. I have put everyone through hell for the last year. None of you deserve that. I'm a grown man who should be looking after himself and not making my family worry if I will wake up the next day or not" Zac said.

Starla's eyes began to water.

"Honey, I know that you have been through a lot this year and in the last couple of years too. You didn't put us through hell, Zac. You were dealing with serious issues that needed to be addressed" Starla said.

"I'm still sorry, for everything" Zac said.

Starla smiled. She stood up and motioned Zac to stand up. Zac stood up and looked at his mother. Starla put her hand on her son's face.

"I love you and I just want you to be safe and healthy. That's all. Don't apologize" Starla said.

Zac hugged his mother. Starla kissed Zac's cheek.

"I love you too" Zac said.

"Come on, let's go inside" Starla said.

Zac and Starla walked into the house. Vanessa looked at Zac and gave him a curious look. Zac wrapped his arms around Vanessa's waist.

"Did you guys talk?" Vanessa whispered.

"Yeah, everything's fine" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled and kissed Zac's lips.

"Goal number one is done" Vanessa said.

"Now, onto all the other ones" Zac said.

The couple and Zac's family had dinner together. They talked about what was going on in each other's lives. Everyone was so happy that Zac was home and finally sober.


	5. A Second Chance

A couple weeks later, Zac had been working on his relationship with Vanessa, his second goal. The couple had been working on their issues that they had and were starting to see an improvement. One day, Zac came home from his weekly therapy appointment. He walked into the house and put his keys down.

"Baby?" Zac called.

"In the kitchen" Vanessa said.

Zac walked into the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. He kissed her shoulder softly.

"How was therapy?" Vanessa asked.

"It was fine. I got a little anxious when I was talking but I'm okay" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac.

"Well your anxiety has gone down a lot since you came home" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"Which is good" Zac said.

"Yeah, I'm very proud of you" Vanessa said.

"Thanks babe" Zac said.

"What are your plans tonight?" Vanessa asked.

"Nothing. Why?" Zac asked.

"Let's just hang out tonight? We haven't done that for three years" Vanessa said.

"Okay, what does that entail?" Zac asked.

"Let's go to dinner and come back and just see where the night takes us" Vanessa said raising her eyebrows.

Zac raised his eyebrow and laughed.

"Are you inferring that you want to do some things?" Zac asked.

"Well, I got a new outfit that I thought you should see" Vanessa said.

Zac's smiled got bigger and he kissed her shoulder.

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Zac asked.

Vanessa giggled. Zac took her hand and the couple left the house. Zac drove to one of their favorite restaurants in LA. Zac parked his car and saw all the paparazzi that was following them. It was their first time going out in public since they had gotten back together. Zac got out of the car and walked to Vanessa's side and helped her out. He took her hand and entwined their fingers. The couple walked into the restaurant, ignoring the comments that were being made by the photographers. They were seated immediately. Zac looked at Vanessa and smiled.

"So when are you going to go back to work?" Vanessa asked.

"I'm taking a medical leave of absence. I told my director that I need six months to recover from rehab" Zac said.

"Oh wow" Vanessa said.

"Yeah. I need to have the time to relax and get back to my daily routine. Plus I want to have that time with you" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"Are you okay with all the paparazzi stuff? It was kind of crazy out there" Zac said.

"Yeah, I forgot how crazy it gets" Vanessa said.

"We should have just stayed in" Zac said.

"It's fine baby. We would have to leave the house at some point. We knew it was going to be crazy" Vanessa said.

Zac sighed. The couple ordered and ate their food. After they paid, the couple left the restaurant. Zac put his hand over Vanessa's face, shielding her from the paparazzi. They walked to the car and Zac helped Vanessa get in. He closed her door and went to the driver's side and got in. Zac started driving and looked at Vanessa.

"You okay?" Zac asked.

"Yeah, it just bring back memories" Vanessa said.

Zac entwined their fingers together.

"Sorry" Zac said.

"Don't be sorry. I just have to get used to it again" Vanessa said.

Zac continued to drive until he pulled up to the house. He parked his car and the couple got out. Zac and Vanessa walked into the house and went upstairs. Vanessa went into the bathroom and took a bag with her. She changed into the outfit that was in the bag. Vanessa peeked into the bedroom and saw Zac on his phone.

"I have a little surprise for you" Vanessa said.

Zac looked up and smiled. Vanessa walked into the room in a sexy lingerie set. Zac smiled. Vanessa climbed onto the bed and moved over to where Zac was sitting.

"Baby" Zac said as he put his hand on the small of Vanessa's back.

"What? You don't like it" Vanessa said moving away from her boyfriend.

"Babe, it's not that at all. I do like it. You look so sexy. I just feel like we should work on our relationship a little more before we do anything. I don't want you to feel vulnerable or regret anything" Zac said.

Vanessa got off the bed and walked into the bathroom and closed the door. Zac sighed. He didn't want to hurt Vanessa's feelings but he thought they should work out their issues before they get serious again. Zac wanted to have sex with Vanessa more than anything, he just wanted it to be at the right time. It had been ten minutes since Vanessa went into the bathroom and she still hadn't come out. Zac got up from the bed and walked to the bathroom door and knocked politely.

"Van, can I come in?" Zac asked.

"Yeah, it's open" Vanessa said softly.

Zac opened the door and saw Vanessa sitting on the floor with her back leaning against the wall and tears running down her face. He felt awful. Zac walked into the bathroom and sat down next to Vanessa.

"I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings" Zac said.

Vanessa sniffled.

"It's not that you hurt my feelings Zac. It's the fact that, this is how we ended up last time and then a month later we broke up" Vanessa said.

"What can I do to make you feel better?" Zac asked.

"I just want to _feel _loved" Vanessa said.

Zac leaned in and kissed Vanessa's lips softly, but passionately. Vanessa kissed Zac back with as much passion as she could give. Zac moved down to her neck and placed sweet, loving kisses from her jaw to her chest. He pulled away and kissed her forehead lovingly.

"I promise, when we work on our issues, then we will have sex" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said as Zac wiped her tears away.

Zac nodded. He stood up and put his hands out. Vanessa took her boyfriend's hands and he helped her stand up. Zac kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too. I'm going to change into my pajamas" Vanessa said walking into the bedroom.

Vanessa went to Zac's underwear drawer and pulled out a pair of his boxers. She changed into them and took her shirt off and picked out one of Zac's and put it on.

"I missed wearing your clothes" Vanessa said as she got into bed.

"I missed you wearing my clothes" Zac said.

Vanessa smelled the shirt that she was wearing and smiled. She walked over to the bed and got under the covers.

"What are we doing tomorrow?" Vanessa asked.

"I think I'm going to go to the gym Dylan. I need to get back into shape" Zac said.

"Is he going to come down for the weekend?" Vanessa asked.

"No, just for the day. He wanted to see how I was doing and also wanted to see you. He was asking about you" Zac said.

"Oh. It will be good to see him" Vanessa said.

"Yeah" Zac said.

"Did you take your anti-anxiety meds?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine for the night" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

"Good night baby. I love you" Zac said kissing Vanessa's lips.

"Night babe. I love you too" Vanessa said.

Zac turned off the light and Vanessa snuggled into Zac's arms and fell asleep. The next morning, Vanessa woke up and saw Zac not in bed. She got out of bed and walked downstairs. Zac was in the backyard shooting hoops, shirtless. Vanessa smiled when she saw him through the window. She walked outside and sat at one of the tables on the patio.

"My baby is on fire" Vanessa said.

Zac looked over at his girlfriend and smiled.

"I didn't hear you come out here" Zac said.

"I haven't seen you play basketball in a long time" Vanessa said.

"Yeah, it's been a while" Zac said putting the ball down and walking over to Vanessa.

Zac kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"Good morning" Zac said.

"Good morning" Vanessa said.

"Dylan said he was going to come around twelve. Is that okay?" Zac asked.

"Yeah, that's fine" Vanessa said.

A couple hours later, the doorbell rang. Zac walked to the front door and opened it. He smiled when he saw his little brother.

"Hey man" Zac said hugging his brother.

"Hey, how are you feeling? You look good" Dylan said.

"Thanks. Are you ready to go?" Zac asked.

"Yeah" Dylan said.

"Baby, we are leaving" Zac said.

Vanessa walked into the room and smiled when she saw Dylan.

"Okay. Hi Dylan" Vanessa said.

Dylan smiled and hugged his "older sister".

"Hi Van. I missed you" Dylan said.

Vanessa smiled.

"I missed you too. How's everything going?" Vanessa asked.

"Everything's fine. Nothing new. How are you?" Dylan asked.

"I'm fine. Just working on some new projects" Vanessa said.

"That's awesome" Dylan said.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"We are going to head out. I'll be home in a couple hours" Zac said.

"Okay. Love you and have fun" Vanessa said kissing Zac's lips.

"I love you too" Zac said.

The two brothers left the house. A couple weeks later, Vanessa was at her parents house because her grandparents were in town. Zac was at home planning a very special evening for Vanessa and himself. He had cleaned the whole house and dimmed the lights. Zac put a lingerie set on Vanessa's side of the bed and had lit candles throughout the bedroom. He had been feeling a lot better since he had left rehab and he and Vanessa had worked on their relationship a lot in last couple weeks and finally felt that they could go to the next level. Zac's thoughts were interrupted when he heard the front door open and Vanessa walk into the house. Vanessa looked around the living room and saw candles lit everywhere. She walked deeper into the house and didn't see Zac anywhere. Vanessa then heard Zac come down the stairs. She looked at him and smiled.

"Baby, what's all this?" Vanessa asked.

"I wanted tonight to be about us. We have come a long way since I was in rehab and I think that we deserve to have a night that we don't have to think about work, or our families and friends. Just us" Zac said.

"Just us" Vanessa repeated.

"Just us" Zac confirmed.

Vanessa smiled. She kissed Zac's lips softly. Zac took his girlfriend's hand in his and pulled back.

"I have a few surprises" Zac said.

Vanessa raised her eyebrows. Zac kissed Vanessa's lips again.

"Come on" Zac said.

Vanessa followed Zac upstairs. She saw that the same candles that were downstairs were also lit upstairs as well. Vanessa smiled. Zac stopped at the bedroom door, which was closed.

"I'm going to ask this because I don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you or anything" Zac started.

Vanessa looked at Zac confused.

"Do you want to have sex?" Zac asked blushing.

Vanessa smiled and leaned in and kissed Zac's lips.

"You are so cute. I can't take it. I don't want you to feel pressured to do anything. I don't want to make you do anything that you don't want to do" Vanessa said.

"I don't feel pressured. I feel good about how far we have come in the last couple of weeks" Zac said.

"Me too. So I guess my answer is yes" Vanessa said sweetly.

Zac smiled.

"Are you sure?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"Positive" Vanessa said.

"Okay" Zac said.

Zac opened the bedroom door and the couple walked into the bedroom. Vanessa smiled when she saw rose petals scattered around the room. The bedroom lights were dimmed and her favorite candle was burning. She then saw the lingerie set that Zac had picked out for her. Vanessa looked at Zac.

"How long have you been planning this?" Vanessa asked.

Zac smiled.

"I got the idea about an hour before you came home" Zac said.

Vanessa giggled and kissed his cheek.

"You always could think of the most romantic thing to do for me at the last second and it still be perfect" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled and kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"I only want the best for my baby" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. She picked up the lingerie set and walked into the bathroom. Two minutes later, Vanessa opened the door slowly. Zac looked at his girlfriend and smiled. Vanessa walked into the room and looked at Zac.

"What do you think?" Vanessa asked as she spun around slowly.

Zac smiled.

"You look so beautiful and sexy" Zac said.

Vanessa slowly climbed onto the bed. Zac took his shirt off and stripped down to his boxers. He leaned down and picked up a package and went into the bathroom and closed the door. A minute later, Zac came out of the bathroom and climbed onto the bed. The couple got under the covers. Vanessa straddled Zac's waist. Zac put his hands on Vanessa's waist.

"Are you sure you want to do this? If you are having second thoughts-" Zac started.

"Zac" Vanessa said putting a finger on his mouth.

Zac smiled.

"I should shut up" Zac said.

Vanessa giggled and nodded. She kissed Zac' s lips softly but passionately. Zac ran his fingers through Vanessa's hair. Vanessa's lingerie and Zac's boxers were eventually discarded and the couple showed each other how much they loved one another. The next morning, Vanessa woke up to her head laying against Zac's chest, listening to his heartbeat. She remembered the events that occurred the night before and smiled. She sank deeper into the warm sheets and sighed happily. Zac opened his eyes slowly. He looked down at his chest and smiled when he saw Vanessa.

"Good morning beautiful" Zac said.

"Good morning" Vanessa said.

"Did I hurt you last night?" Zac asked.

"No, not at all" Vanessa said.

"Last night was the best night I have had in three years" Zac said entwining their fingers together.

Vanessa smiled.

"Me too. Thank you" Vanessa said.

"For what?" Zac asked.

"For being the sweetest man I have ever met. For always loving me unconditionally" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled and kissed her swollen lips.

"I will always love you. No matter what. You don't ever have to worry or thank me about that" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too Vanessa Anne Hudgens" Zac said.

"Now it feels like old times" Vanessa said.

"Is that a bad thing?" Zac asked.

"No. I feel like nothing from the past ever happened and that we just stayed together" Vanessa said.

Zac kissed Vanessa's head softly.

"I'm sorry for putting you through all of that" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac and felt tears coming to her eyes.

"Baby" Vanessa started.

"Let me explain before you say anything. I'm sorry for not being there when you needed me. I'm sorry for always thinking of myself and not caring what you wanted and shutting you out all the time. I'm sorry that everyone kept following us and not giving us time alone. I'm sorry for everything" Zac said.

Vanessa choked out a sob. Zac wrapped his arms around Vanessa and rubbed her back as she cried. Ten minutes later, Vanessa's sobs subsided and she was trying to figure out what to say.

"Baby, maybe then wasn't our time. Maybe, this is our second chance. A second chance to fix everything and get it right. You don't need to apologize Zac" Vanessa said.

Zac kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too baby girl. I love you too" Zac said.

That morning, the couple had realized that neither of them were going anywhere and that they wanted to be in each other's lives, forever.


	6. A Bump In The Road

The next few weeks had flown by for the couple. Zac had continued his therapy and was feeling a lot better. Vanessa had been working on a cover shoot for a magazine. The couple felt like their lives had improved so much over the last few months and were so happy that they had each other. One night, Vanessa unlocked the front door and walked into the house. Her cover shoot had gone longer than planned and she was exhausted.

"Baby, I'm home" Vanessa said.

Zac walked into the living room and went over to his girlfriend and kissed her lips.

"How was your shoot?" Zac asked.

"Exhausting and I don't feel very good" Vanessa said putting her purse down.

"What's wrong?" Zac said.

"I just don't feel like myself. I feel tired and hungry all the time. I feel like I'm gaining weight. Maybe I'm coming down with the flu" Vanessa said.

Zac put his hand to Vanessa's head.

"You are a little warm. Go take a hot shower and get into bed. I'll make my famous sick food specialty" Zac said.

"Put extra chicken in my soup please" Vanessa said knowing what her boyfriend was going to cook.

Zac smiled.

"You got it. Now, go upstairs" Zac said.

Vanessa walked upstairs and took a shower. Zac went into the kitchen and started making Vanessa's soup. Ten minutes later, Zac finished cooking the soup and put it into a bowl and carried it upstairs to the bedroom. Zac walked into the bedroom and saw Vanessa snuggled into the bed. He brought the soup over to her.

"How are you feeling?" Zac asked.

"Gross" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Try that and see if it makes you feel a little better" Zac said.

Vanessa took a spoonful of soup and put it into her mouth. She swallowed it and sighed in delight.

"Thank you baby" Vanessa said.

"No problem. Do you need anything else?" Zac asked.

Vanessa shook her head.

"No, can you just stay with me?" Vanessa asked.

Zac smiled.

"Of course" Zac said.

Vanessa ate her soup. Once she finished, she looked at Zac.

"That was really good. Your soup has gotten a lot better" Vanessa said.

"Was it bad before?" Zac asked.

"No, it just needed some minor adjustments" Vanessa giggled.

Zac smiled.

"Maybe just a couple. I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

"Get some sleep okay? The more rest you get, the faster you will get well" Zac said tucking Vanessa into the bed.

Vanessa nodded. Zac kissed her head softly.

"Good night sweetheart" Zac said.

"Good night" Vanessa said.

Zac got off the bed and turned off the light. The next morning, Vanessa opened her eyes and immediately felt nauseous. She got up quickly and went to the bathroom and kneeled down in front of the toilet and released the remains of her stomach. Zac woke up to hearing Vanessa throwing up. He got up and walked into the bathroom quickly. Zac sat down next to Vanessa and rubbed her back soothingly.

"It's okay baby, just relax" Zac said.

A couple minutes later, Vanessa moved away from the toilet. She got up and brushed her teeth and washed her face.

"Are you okay?" Zac asked.

"I don't feel well" Vanessa said.

"Maybe you should call your doctor" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"Come on, get back in bed" Zac said taking her hand in his.

The couple walked back into the bedroom. Vanessa got into bed and picked up her phone. She made an appointment to go see her doctor for that afternoon. An hour later, Zac came back into the bedroom to check on Vanessa.

"How are you feeling baby?" Zac asked.

"Tired" Vanessa said.

Zac put his hand against her forehead.

"You feel a little warm still, but let's see what your doctor thinks" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"We have to go in a little bit babe" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Vanessa got out of bed and got dressed. She then walked downstairs and went over to Zac and wrapped her arms around him.

"Are you ready to go?" Zac asked.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"Okay, let's go see what this thing is" Zac said taking Vanessa's hand in his.

The couple left the house. Zac drove to the doctor's office and parked his car. Zac and Vanessa got out of the car and walked into the office. Vanessa signed herself in and then sat next to Zac. Zac put his arm around Vanessa and kissed her head softly. A couple minutes later a woman with long dark brown hair, who was probably in her mid-thirties, came into the room with a file.

"Vanessa?" the nurse called.

The couple stood up and followed the nurse into a room where Vanessa's vitals were taken. They then were escorted to a room. The nurse closed the door behind them.

"Vanessa, what seems to be the problem today?" the nurse asked.

"I think I have the flu" Vanessa said softly.

"Do you have a fever?" the nurse asked.

"She's a little warm" Zac answered for Vanessa.

"Does your body ache?" the nurse asked.

"A little bit" Vanessa said.

"Have you been sexually active in the last month?" the nurse asked.

Vanessa blushed and nodded. The nurse wrote all these notes down and then looked at the couple.

"Please change into this gown and I'll go let Dr. Herron know that you are here" the nurse said handing Vanessa a gown.

"Alright" Vanessa said.

The nurse left the room. Vanessa changed into the gown and sat on the table. Zac looked at his girlfriend and smiled.

"Why did she ask me if I was sexually active?" Vanessa asked.

"It's protocol babe. They have to ask. When I go to the doctor they ask me too" Zac said.

"It's just weird" Vanessa said.

There was a knock on the door and a tall, slender woman, who was probably in her mid forties came into the room.

"Hi Vanessa. How are you?" Dr. Herron asked.

"I feel lousy" Vanessa said.

"What's going on?" Dr. Herron asked as she washed her hands.

"I think I am getting the flu" Vanessa said.

Vanessa described her symptoms to her doctor. Dr. Herron looked at the couple.

"Have you been sexually active in the last few weeks?" Dr. Herron asked.

"Yes, why do I keep getting asked that?" Vanessa asked.

"I'm just trying to figure out what's going on, that's all. I'm trying to rule out the things that this could be" Dr. Herron said.

Vanessa nodded.

"When was your last period?" Dr. Herron asked.

"Last month" Vanessa said.

"When are you supposed to have your next one?" Dr. Herron asked.

Vanessa sat and thought about it and she looked up.

"I'm late" Vanessa said worriedly.

Zac put his hand on Vanessa's knee and looked at her. Vanessa looked at Zac and then back at Dr. Herron.

"I want you to take a pregnancy test okay? Just to see if you are or not" Dr. Herron said.

Vanessa nodded. Dr. Herron opened a drawer and pulled out a package and handed it to Vanessa.

"I'll be back in a few minutes to read it" Dr. Herron said leaving the room.

Zac looked at Vanessa. Vanessa looked at Zac.

"I'm so scared" Vanessa said.

"Baby, I know you are scared but you need to take the test. We won't know unless you do it" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. Zac kissed her lips softly. Vanessa went into the bathroom and took the test. Two minutes later, she came out and handed the test to the nurse and walked back into the exam room. Zac smiled. Vanessa walked back to her seat and sat down next to her boyfriend.

"What if I am pregnant? What are we going to do?" Vanessa asked.

"We will have to take it day by day Van. Everything will be okay. I will support you no matter what" Zac said entwining his fingers with hers.

Vanessa sighed nervously. Zac kissed Vanessa's cheek softly.

"Just relax" Zac said.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Dr. Herron came into the room and smiled.

"What is the verdict?" Vanessa asked.

"You are pregnant. Congratulations" Dr. Herron said.

Zac looked at Vanessa and knew that she was in shock. He thanked Dr. Herron and the couple left the office and got into the car. Zac started driving and occasionally looked at Vanessa.

"Are you okay?" Zac asked.

There was silence. Zac nodded and continued to drive home. Once he pulled into the driveway and parked the car, Zac looked at Vanessa.

"Van" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac with tears in her eyes.

"How can I be okay Zac? How? We have our careers, our lives, we aren't married...How the hell am I supposed to be okay after receiving news like that?" Vanessa cried.

The couple walked into the house. Vanessa went upstairs and walked into the bedroom and closed the door. Zac sighed. He put his hands on his face. Zac then picked up his phone and dialed his little brother's number.

"Hello?" Dylan answered.

"Hey, what are you doing right now?" Zac asked.

"Nothing, why what's up?" Dylan asked.

"I have a big problem and need a guy to talk to" Zac said.

"I'm on my way" Dylan said.

The two brothers hung up the phone. Ten minutes later, the doorbell rang. Zac walked to the front door and opened it.

"Hey man, what's this problem? Are you guys fighting?" Dylan asked.

"Let's go to the backyard. Van is upstairs" Zac said.

The two men walked out to the backyard and sat down at a table.

"Alright, what's going on?" Dylan asked.

"So Van has been feeling sick the past couple of days and I took her to the doctor today and found out some news" Zac started.

"What's wrong?" Dylan asked.

Zac took a deep breath and looked at his brother.

"She's pregnant" Zac said.

"What?" Dylan asked in shock.

"Yeah. I don't know what to do Dyl. I don't know how to handle a situation like this" Zac said.

Dylan sighed.

"All you can do is be supportive Zac. She's probably scared to death and in complete shock, I'm guessing" Dylan said.

Zac nodded.

"I just feel like everything is spinning" Zac said.

"Don't let her to see you like that, either. You have to be calm for the sake of her emotional state" Dylan said.

Zac nodded.

"Congratulations?" Dylan asked slowly.

Zac smiled.

"Thanks Dylan" Zac said.

"Hey, if you need to talk, you can always come to me. I'm a good listener" Dylan said.

Zac smiled. The two brothers stood up and hugged. Dylan left the house shortly after. Zac closed the front door behind him and sighed. He walked upstairs and saw that the bedroom door was still closed. Zac put his ear to the door and heard his girlfriend sobbing. He knocked on the door softly.

"Van, can I come in?" Zac asked.

Zac heard a faint "yes" and walked into the bedroom. He looked at Vanessa and saw her lying in a ball. Zac sat on the edge of the bed carefully.

"Baby, look at me please" Zac said.

Vanessa looked up at her boyfriend with tears in her eyes.

"Talk to me" Zac said.

"How are we going to do this? We are young and supposed to be focused on our careers" Vanessa cried.

"Hey listen to me okay? We are going to get through this. I know that it's shocking, but it's happening babe. Our careers can be put on hold for a while" Zac said.

Vanessa sniffled.

"How can you be so calm about this?" Vanessa asked.

"One of us has to be. I know we are young, but we are ready to do this" Zac said.

Vanessa took a deep breath and released it.

"I just don't know how we are going to be able to do this" Vanessa said.

"We will find a way. Everything is going to be okay. This is just a bump in the road that we have to deal with" Zac said.

"Are you upset with me?" Vanessa asked.

Zac's face softened and he looked at his girlfriend.

"No baby. This isn't your fault. Things like this just happen. The condom probably broke and we didn't see it" Zac said.

Vanessa sighed.

"I love you so much and I hate to see you like this. We will figure everything out. I promise" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

"I'm not leaving either so you are stuck with me. I'm not going to let you go through this alone" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"So, let's not cry, even though we both want to because our lives just got a little bit more interesting okay? Let's celebrate that we are going to have a new addition to our family" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

"Come here" Zac said.

Vanessa sat up and moved over to where Zac was sitting.

"We are going to be okay" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

The rest of the day, the couple let the news of Vanessa's pregnancy sink in. They couldn't believe that they were going to be parents.


	7. Give Me Strength

The next morning, Vanessa woke up to feeling nauseous. She threw off her sheets and ran to the bathroom. Zac opened his eyes and saw Vanessa running to the bathroom. He got out of bed and walked quickly after her. Vanessa sat down in front of the toilet and released the remains of her stomach. Zac sat down next to Vanessa and rubbed her back soothingly as regurgitated. Five minutes later, Vanessa backed away from the toilet.

"Are you done?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded tiredly. Zac helped Vanessa stand up. Vanessa walked to the sink and brushed her teeth. She then washed her face and turned around and looked at Zac.

"How are you feeling baby?" Zac asked.

"Pregnant" Vanessa said.

Zac opened his arms. Vanessa walked into them and wrapped her arms around her boyfriend's waist. Zac kissed her head softly.

"I didn't think I would be at this stage of my life until I was at least in my thirties" Vanessa said.

"Me either, but we can't change that now" Zac said.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"How do we find out how far along you are?" Zac asked.

"I have to call my OB and schedule an ultrasound" Vanessa said.

"Shouldn't you schedule it as soon as possible?" Zac asked.

"Yes, but I'm just trying to take everything as it comes. I have too much on my mind" Vanessa said.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to stress you out" Zac said.

Vanessa sighed.

"I'm not stressed out babe. I just am trying to deal with this" Vanessa said breaking down.

Zac rubbed her back soothingly as she cried. He kissed her head softly. Ten minutes later, Vanessa calmed down and looked at Zac.

"Sorry" Vanessa said.

"Hey, don't apologize. I get that this is all a little overwhelming. What would make you feel better?" Zac asked.

"Kiss me" Vanessa said.

Zac leaned in and kissed Vanessa's lips softly but passionately.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too. I'm going to go call my OB and schedule an appointment" Vanessa said.

"Alright" Zac said.

Vanessa made an appointment with her obstetrician and walked into the kitchen and saw Zac eating an apple.

"My appointment is tomorrow at nine" Vanessa said.

"Okay" Zac said.

"When are we going to tell our parents?" Vanessa asked.

"We could tell them all together tomorrow. Since we will probably have sonogram pictures to show them" Zac said.

"But we have to do it in a creative way" Vanessa said.

Zac looked at Vanessa amused.

"What way should we tell them?" Zac asked.

"We should hand them an envelope with the sonogram inside and walk away and act like it was nothing. Once they open the envelope, they will freak out and call us back over to them" Vanessa said.

"That would be funny. They probably would freak out since it's so unexpected" Zac said.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"Let's do that" Zac said.

"Alright" Vanessa said.

The next day, Vanessa woke up and ran to the bathroom with Zac following her. Vanessa sat down in front of the toilet and regurgitated the remains of her stomach. Zac kissed her head softly and whispered comforting words in her ear to try to get her to relax. Once Vanessa finished, she stood up and walked to the sink and brushed her teeth. Vanessa then looked at her boyfriend.

"Come on, we need to get ready to go" Zac said.

The couple got dressed and left the house. Zac drove to Vanessa's doctor's office and parked his car.

"Are you ready?" Zac asked.

"Ready? Not yet. Do I have to? Yeah" Vanessa said.

Zac kissed Vanessa's cheek softly.

"I'll be with you the whole time" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. The couple got out of the car and walked into the office. Vanessa signed herself in and sat down next to Zac.

"What do you think the baby will look like?" Vanessa asked.

"I don't know. I hope he or she looks like you" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"Well it takes two to tango baby. The baby has to look like you too" Vanessa said.

Zac laughed.

"I honestly don't know what he or she will look like. Right now, all I care about is having a healthy baby" Zac said.

"Yeah, I agree" Vanessa said.

A woman with blonde hair, who was probably in her late twenties came into the waiting room with a file.

"Vanessa Hudgens?" the nurse called.

"Game time. Let's go see our baby" Zac said taking Vanessa's hand in his.

The couple stood up and followed the nurse into a small room, where Vanessa's vitals were taken. They then were escorted to an exam room.

"Vanessa, take off everything but your bra and put this gown on. Dr. Berry will be in shortly " the nurse said handing Vanessa a gown.

Vanessa took the gown.

"Thank you" Vanessa said.

The nurse left the room. Zac looked at Vanessa.

"Do you want me to step out while you change?" Zac asked.

"No, you are fine" Vanessa said.

Vanessa changed into the gown and sat down on the exam table.

"I hate feeling so exposed" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled. He knew Vanessa was nervous.

"Babe, it's just your doctor and I that you are going to see" Zac said.

"I know. I just am feeling a lot more exposed" Vanessa said.

"Just relax" Zac said.

There was a knock on the door and Dr. Berry, who had long dark brown hair and was probably in her mid-thirties came into the room.

"Hi Vanessa, it's been a while" Dr. Berry said.

"Yeah it has. This is my boyfriend, Zac" Vanessa said.

"Hi Zac, nice to meet you" Dr. Berry said shaking Zac's hand.

"Vanessa, in your file it said that you recently found out you are pregnant. Is that correct?" Dr. Berry asked.

"Yeah, we just wanted to know how far along I was and if the baby is healthy" Vanessa said.

"Alright. Vanessa, can you lie back for me? " Dr. Berry asked.

Vanessa lied down on the exam table. Zac took her hand in his and kissed it softly. Vanessa looked at Zac nervously. Dr. Berry put a blanket over Vanessa's lower body and then lifted her gown above her stomach. She then turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up. Dr. Berry took a bottle of gel and squeezed some of the product onto Vanessa's stomach and then looked at the monitor.

"Alright, here we go" Dr. Berry said taking a wand and moving it across Vanessa's stomach.

The couple and Dr. Berry looked at the screen. Dr. Berry moved the wand around Vanessa's stomach and stopped and pointed to the screen.

"There's your baby" Dr. Berry said.

The couple looked at the screen and couldn't believe that they were looking at their child. Vanessa had tears running down her cheeks. Zac wiped them away with his thumb and Vanessa did the same to Zac.

"How far along am I?" Vanessa asked.

"I would say that you are about two and a half months along" Dr. Berry said.

Vanessa and Zac smiled.

"Is the baby healthy?" Zac asked.

Dr. Berry moved the wand around Vanessa's stomach again and looked at the screen.

"Yes, the baby looks very healthy. Would you like me to print some pictures?" Dr. Berry asked.

"Yes please" the couple said simultaneously.

Dr. Berry left the room. Zac looked at Vanessa and smiled.

"That's our baby" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too" Zac said.

There was a knock on the door and Dr. Berry came back into the room and gave the sonogram to Zac.

"Alright, next I just want to examine you and make sure everything's okay" Dr. Berry said.

Vanessa nodded. Dr. Berry spread Vanessa's legs apart. Vanessa held her hand out, searching for Zac's. Zac took her hand in his and looked at Vanessa.

"Vanessa, I just want you to relax okay? You will feel a little pressure" Dr. Berry said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Zac kissed Vanessa's head softly.

"Just look at me baby" Zac whispered.

Vanessa looked at Zac nervously. She took a deep breath and released it. Dr. Berry examined Vanessa and looked at the couple.

"Everything looks good. You are all set. I want to see you in a month" Dr. Berry said.

The couple thanked the doctor. Dr. Berry left the room. Vanessa sat up and wiped the gel off of her stomach and looked at Zac.

"You okay?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"It just makes it feel more real" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"Do you want to go over to your parents house now or do you want to go later?" Zac asked.

"Let's go now" Vanessa said.

"Alright" Zac said.

Vanessa got dressed and the couple left the doctor's office. Zac and Vanessa got into the car and started driving to the Hudgens' home.

"Are you nervous to tell your parents?" Zac asked.

"A little bit but I'm trying to not freak out about it" Vanessa said.

"I think they will be shocked but also happy" Zac said.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

Zac pulled up to Vanessa's parents house.

"Let's go tell the grandparents" Zac said.

Vanessa giggled. The couple got out of the car and walked to the front door of the Hudgens' home. Vanessa rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer the door. Stella opened the door and smiled.

"Nessa and Zac attack!" Stella said.

"Hi Stellz" Vanessa said hugging her little sister.

"What's going on?" Stella asked.

"We have to talk to mom and dad" Vanessa said.

"Oh. They are in the living room" Stella said.

The couple walked into the living room and sat down in front of Vanessa's parents.

"Hi guys, what's going on?" Gina asked.

"We have to tell you something mom" Vanessa said.

"What?" Gina asked.

Vanessa looked at Zac and nodded. Zac looked at his girlfriend's mother.

"Vanessa's pregnant" Zac said.

"What?" Gina asked again.

Vanessa's eyes filled with tears. Zac put his arm around Vanessa.

"I'm pregnant" Vanessa said.

"Vanessa" Gina said quietly.

"Please don't freak out" Vanessa said softly.

"Baby, you guys just got back together. Don't you think you are going a little fast?" Gina asked.

Vanessa couldn't hold her tears in any longer. She choked out a sob and walked out of the house.

"Van, come back" Zac said.

Zac sighed. He looked at Gina.

"Zac, you guys are going a little fast, don't you think?" Gina asked.

"What Vanessa and I plan to do in our relationship is up to us. If we are going to have sex, then we are going to have sex. Obviously, we didn't plan on having a baby. Gina, Vanessa is scared out of her mind and needs you more than ever. We have been in each other's lives for years" Zac said.

"I just need some time to process all of this" Gina said.

Zac nodded.

"It's nothing against you both. I just need some time" Gina said.

"Okay" Zac said.

Zac said goodbye to the Hudgens' family and left the house. He walked to the car and opened the passenger seat.

"Hey, are you okay?" Zac asked.

Vanessa looked at Zac with tears in her eyes.

"Zac" Vanessa cried.

Zac held Vanessa in his arms. He kissed her head softly.

"Sh. Baby, it's okay. Everything is okay" Zac said.

"How is everything okay? My parents don't accept it" Vanessa said.

"Van, she just needs to process all of it. Your mom will be fine with time" Zac said.

"I just want to go home" Vanessa said.

"Okay sweetheart" Zac said.

Zac closed Vanessa's door and sighed. He walked to the driver's seat and got in. Zac looked at Vanessa, who had tears running down her cheeks.

"I guess now would be a bad time to ask if you want to drive up to my parents house to tell them" Zac said.

Vanessa sniffled.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

Zac put his hand on Vanessa's leg.

"Why did this have to happen now?" Vanessa asked.

Zac looked at Vanessa.

"Babe, things just happen. I know that you are upset but it's not going to solve anything" Zac said.

"I wish this never happened" Vanessa said.

Zac sighed and kept driving.

"Van, you don't mean that" Zac said.

"Yes I do" Vanessa said.

Zac pulled into the driveway and parked the car. The couple got out of the car and walked into the house. Vanessa walked upstairs and went into the bedroom and closed and locked the door behind her. Zac knew that Vanessa just needed some time to herself. He went into the living room and sat down on the couch. Zac turned on the TV and watched a movie. Vanessa's phone rang. Zac looked at the caller ID, which read "Mom" and answered the phone.

"Hi Gina" Zac said.

"Hi Zac, where's Van?" Gina asked.

"She's upstairs. She's a little upset about what happened" Zac explained.

"Can you please tell her that I'm sorry for reacting the way I did? You were right. I know that she is scared to death and needs me right now" Gina said.

Zac smiled.

"Of course I will" Zac said.

"Thank you. I'll talk to you soon okay?" Gina said.

"Okay" Zac said.

Gina and Zac hung up. Zac turned off the TV and walked upstairs. He walked to the bedroom door and sighed. Zac knocked on the door.

"Baby? Can I come in?" Zac asked.

Vanessa opened the door. Her cheeks had tear stains on them and her eyes were red from crying. Zac opened his arms and Vanessa walked into them. He kissed her head softly.

"Are you okay?" Zac asked.

Vanessa shrugged.

"Your mom called and wanted to apologize" Zac said.

"It doesn't take the pain away" Vanessa said.

"I know it doesn't sweetheart. But, you need your mom more than ever right now" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"You are going to have a baby in six and a half months" Zac said.

"I know. She didn't make me feel any better about being pregnant. She made me feel more depressed about it than I already was" Vanessa explained.

"I know. But she apologized and now you need to move past this babe" Zac said.

Vanessa sighed. She put her hand on her flat stomach.

"Okay, I will accept her apology" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Alright. Are you feeling okay?" Zac asked.

"I'm a little tired. I think I am going to take a nap" Vanessa said.

"Okay baby. Let me know if you need anything" Zac said.

Zac kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too baby. Get some rest" Zac said.

Vanessa lied down on the bed and fell asleep. The couple knew that the next few months were going to be challenging, but they knew that they had the strength to get through it together.


	8. I Need You To Stay

A couple weeks later, Vanessa was three and a half months pregnant and was feeling pretty good, except for the occasional rough morning sickness days. Zac had been working on some pre-production for a movie that he had signed to do after the baby was born. One day, Zac opened the door and set his keys down on the counter. He walked into the kitchen and smiled.

"Hey baby, how was your day?" Zac asked kissing his girlfriend's lips.

"It was fine. Look what decided to appear today" Vanessa said turning to face Zac.

Zac looked at Vanessa confused. Vanessa giggled. She took her boyfriend's hand in his and placed it on her stomach. Zac's eyes widened.

"You are showing?" Zac asked incredulously.

Vanessa nodded. Zac smiled. He leaned down and lifted Vanessa's shirt up to her belly button. Zac kissed Vanessa's stomach gently. He had started getting excited about the baby and loved watching Vanessa's body change. Zac stood up and leaned in and kissed Vanessa's lips.

"It's going to get harder to hide that I'm pregnant now" Vanessa said.

"Well, we shouldn't care what other people think. This is our baby. You shouldn't have to hide it babe" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"Press will be calling every day when I go out and show the world that I'm pregnant" Vanessa said.

"Then let them. Don't worry about that. That is the least of our problems" Zac said.

Vanessa put her hand on her expanding stomach.

"So how was your day really?" Zac asked changing the subject knowing that Vanessa had changed it on purpose.

"I threw up" Vanessa said.

"Is it getting better?" Zac asked.

"Not really. It doesn't matter what I eat. It just happens" Vanessa said.

"It will get better soon" Zac said kissing Vanessa's forehead.

"How was your day?" Vanessa asked.

"Long. I just wanted everything to magically get done so I could come home" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"Well you are home now" Vanessa said.

Zac put his hand on Vanessa's small bump and smiled.

"I can't believe he or she is really in there" Zac said.

"The bump makes it more real" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"Are we going to find out if it's a boy or a girl next month babe?" Zac asked.

"I hope so. Then we can start putting names together and we won't have to call the baby "it" anymore" Vanessa said.

"Yeah, I'm so excited to be a daddy" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. She was so happy to see Zac start to act like his old self and be happier than he had ever been.

"I'm excited to be a mommy" Vanessa said.

"Have you talked to Ashley?" Zac asked.

"Yeah, she just signed a record deal" Vanessa said.

"That's great!" Zac said happily.

Vanessa smiled. Zac looked at Vanessa.

"Why are you smiling like that?" Zac asked.

"I'm just really happy that you are happy" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Everything that has been going on has made me so happy. We are having a baby and our relationship is better than it has ever been" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. She leaned in and kissed Zac's lips.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too and I love our baby" Zac said.

The next morning, Vanessa came out of the bathroom and got back into bed and sighed. Today was a bad morning sickness day. Vanessa snuggled into her sheets and closed her eyes. Zac came into the room and smiled. He carefully lied down on the bed next to Vanessa and kissed her cheek. Vanessa opened her eyes slowly.

"I need to go meet with the production team. Are you feeling okay?" Zac asked.

"Today was a bad morning sickness day" Vanessa said tiredly.

"Do you want me to stay home? I will if you need me to stay" Zac said.

"I need you to stay" Vanessa said quietly.

"Okay baby. Let me call the team and I will be right back" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. Zac left the room. Ten minutes later, Zac came back into the room and took his shirt off and stripped down to his boxers. He got into bed and Vanessa snuggled into his chest. Zac wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and kissed her shoulder.

"Are you feeling better?" Zac asked.

Vanessa shook her head.

"I feel bloated and uncomfortable" Vanessa said.

Zac rubbed Vanessa's back in soothing circles. He moved his hand to Vanessa's stomach and ran his hand over it gently. Vanessa put her head in the crook of Zac's neck and inhaled his cologne and relaxed. Zac felt Vanessa relax in his arms. He looked to his side and saw her head buried in his neck. Zac smiled.

"Do you think we will be good parents to the baby?" Vanessa asked softly.

Zac pulled back so that he could looked at Vanessa.

"I think that we have a lot to learn first. But, I think we will be great parents baby. Our child is going to love his or her mommy" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"He or she is going to love their daddy too" Vanessa said.

"I hope so" Zac said.

"Are you scared to become a father?" Vanessa asked.

"I haven't thought about that a lot yet. I just want to take everything day by day, week by week, and month by month" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"Do you need me to do anything?" Zac asked.

Vanessa shook her head. Zac moved back to his previous position.

"You start filming after the baby is born?" Vanessa asked clarifying.

"Yeah, but I'm not going to start until I know that you can handle taking care of the baby by yourself" Zac said.

The rest of the day, the couple relaxed around the house. A couple weeks later, Vanessa came out of the bathroom after regurgitating the remains of her stomach and walked to her closet to get dressed. She had an ultrasound today. Zac was at a production meeting but promised Vanessa that he would be there. Vanessa went downstairs and picked up and apple and took a bite out of it and left the house. She drove to her doctor's office and parked her car. Vanessa got out of the car and walked into the office. She signed in and sat down in a chair and sighed. A couple minutes later, Vanessa's name was called and she followed the nurse into an exam room.

"Vanessa, please change into this gown and Dr. Berry will be in shortly" the nurse said handing Vanessa a gown.

The nurse left. Vanessa changed into the gown and sat on the exam table. She heard her phone vibrate and looked at her phone and saw a text from Zac.

_Be there in five. I love you. _

Vanessa smiled. She quickly texted him back. A couple minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Zac poked his head in and smiled.

"Hi baby. Sorry I'm late" Zac said walking into the room and closing the door behind him.

"You aren't late. You are right on time" Vanessa said kissing Zac's lips.

"Has Dr. Berry come in yet?" Zac asked.

"Not yet" Vanessa said putting her hand on her bump.

"We can find out the sex today right?" Zac asked.

"Hopefully" Vanessa said.

There was a knock on the door and Dr. Berry came into the room.

"Hi guys. How are you feeling Vanessa?" Dr. Berry asked.

"I feel pretty good" Vanessa said.

"How's the morning sickness?" Dr. Berry asked as she washed her hands.

"Terrible. When is it supposed to stop?" Vanessa asked.

"Well you are four months right?" Dr. Berry asked.

"Yes" Vanessa said.

"It should stop in a couple weeks" Dr. Berry said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

"I know it's uncomfortable, but it will be over soon. Do you want to see your baby today?" Dr. Berry asked

The couple nodded.

"Can we find out the sex?" Vanessa asked.

"Let's see if we can. Zac, can you help her lie back?" Dr. Berry asked.

"Yeah" Zac said.

Zac helped Vanessa lie down. Vanessa took Zac's hand in his and entwined their fingers together. Dr. Berry raised Vanessa's gown above her bump and squeezed some gel onto it. She turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up. Once the ultrasound heated, Dr. Berry took a wand and moved it around Vanessa's stomach. The couple looked at the monitor and heard a thumping.

"Do you hear that?" Dr. Berry asked.

"Yeah" the couple said.

"That's the baby's heartbeat" Dr. Berry said.

Zac looked at Vanessa and kissed her cheek softly. Vanessa looked at Zac and smiled. Dr. Berry moved the wand around Vanessa's stomach again and stopped. She looked at the screen and smiled.

"There's your baby's head" Dr. Berry said.

Zac and Vanessa smiled.

"Now, let's see if we can find out the sex" Dr. Berry said.

Dr. Berry moved the wand around Vanessa's stomach and stopped. She looked at the screen.

"You are having a girl" Dr. Berry said.

Tears ran down Vanessa's cheeks. Zac looked at Vanessa and smiled. He leaned over and kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"I love you sweetheart" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

Zac wiped Vanessa's tears away and kissed her lips again.

"I will print some pictures for you guys and be right back" Dr. Berry said.

Dr. Berry left the room. Vanessa looked at Zac and smiled.

"We are having a girl" Vanessa said excitedly.

Zac nodded.

"Are you happy?" Zac asked.

Vanessa smiled.

"So happy. We are having a baby girl. I can't believe it" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled. Dr. Berry came back into the room.

"Alright. Now, Vanessa I just need to examine you and you will be all set" Dr. Berry said.

"Okay" Vanessa said as Dr. Berry wiped the gel off of her stomach.

Vanessa spread her legs apart and took a deep breath. Zac held her hand and kissed her cheek softly.

"Take a deep breath for me Vanessa" Dr. Berry said.

Vanessa took another deep breath. Dr. Berry examined Vanessa and then looked at the couple.

"Everything looks good. I will see you in a month" Dr. Berry said.

Dr. Berry left the room.

"How are we going to tell our parents babe?" Zac asked.

"I don't know. Are we going to tell them all together?" Vanessa asked.

"Do you want to?" Zac asked.

"It doesn't matter to me" Vanessa said.

"Let's tell them all together. It would be easier" Zac asked.

"Okay. When do you want to tell them?" Vanessa asked.

"We could tell them tonight" Zac suggested.

"Okay, call your family and tell them to come here and I will call mine" Vanessa said.

Vanessa changed back into her clothes and the couple left Dr. Berry's office. They drove home and got out of the car and walked into the house.

"Let me call my parents and tell them to come over" Zac said.

"Okay. I will call mine" Vanessa said.

The couple called their families and told them to come over because they had news about the baby that they wanted to share. A couple hours later, the Efron and Hudgens family were sitting in Zac and Vanessa's living room.

"Alright, so what is the news that you needed to tell us?" Gina asked.

"Are you having twins?" Starla asked.

"No, we aren't having twins. Babe, do you want to tell them?" Zac asked.

"Okay. So as all of you know, I am four months pregnant. I had a doctor's appointment today and we wanted to know the sex of the baby. So we are having a girl" Vanessa said.

Both families screamed and cheered. Everyone was so happy for Zac and Vanessa. Stella and Dylan were excited to meet their niece. A couple hours later, the excitement of the newest member of the family had died down.

"Van, are you going to have an epidural when you are in labor?" Gina asked.

"I haven't really thought about the birth yet. Zac and I haven't discussed it yet" Vanessa said.

"Get the epidural. You will regret not getting one. I almost broke David's hand when I had Zac" Starla piped in.

"When are you due?" Gina asked.

"May 17th" Vanessa said putting her hand on her bump.

Everyone talked about the baby for the rest of the night. Later that night, Zac closed the front door after saying goodbye to their families. Vanessa walked into the living room and sat down. Zac followed her and sat down next to her.

"Our mothers are asking about the birth" Vanessa said.

"What do they want to know?" Zac asked.

"If I am getting an epidural and just stuff like that. It's giving me anxiety about the whole thing" Vanessa said.

"Well that is something that we need to discuss. It's your decision. I can't tell you to do anything because I am not the one going through it" Zac said.

"I'm getting kind of scared" Vanessa said as her eyes filled with tears.

Zac's face softened.

"Baby, don't cry. Everything is going to be fine okay? You will have Dr. Berry and I there" Zac said.

"It just scares me. What if I can't do it?" Vanessa asked.

"Ness, you will be able to do it. I know you can. I know that you are scared and that's to be expected sweetheart" Zac said.

"I just don't know what is going to happen" Vanessa said.

"Let's take one decision at a time. First, you need to decide if you want to get an epidural or not" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I want one. Everyone says it's the worst pain a woman will ever experience" Vanessa said.

"Okay. That's done. Now, who do you want in the delivery room with you?" Zac asked.

"I only want you in there. You are the only person that needs to see anything" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"Alright. See, that wasn't so bad was it? If you are feeling anxiety about the baby Van, you need to tell me so I can help you. That's what I am here for" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. She leaned over and kissed Zac's lips softly. Vanessa sighed and put her hand on her bump.

"I wonder what she is going to look like" Vanessa said.

"I know that she will be beautiful, just like her mom" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"We need to start thinking of names" Vanessa said.

"Yeah. But like I said before, let's take everything one at a time" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Zac put his hand on top of Vanessa's on her bump. The couple couldn't wait until they got to hold their baby girl.


	9. Mia

That night, the couple fell asleep in each other's arms. Vanessa snuggled into Zac's chest. She dreamed about what life would be like when their daughter came and what she would like. But she also started to dream about the unexpected things, like the birth.

_Vanessa's Dream _

_"Alright Vanessa, just keep breathing okay? On the next contraction I need you to push for me" Dr. Berry said. _

_Vanessa moaned in pain. She gripped Zac's hand. Her face was bright red and sweat was running off her face. She had tears in her eyes and her body was shaking. Zac looked at Vanessa. _

_"This is it baby" Zac said. _

_"I don't know if I can do this Zac" Vanessa said. _

_"Van, you can do it" Zac said. _

_Vanessa arched her back in pain. Zac held one of Vanessa's legs back like Dr. Berry instructed him to do and a nurse held the other one. _

_"Vanessa, take a deep breath and push" Dr. Berry said. _

_Vanessa took a deep breath and pushed hard. She screamed in pain._

_End of Dream_

Vanessa screamed and sat up in bed. She was breathing heavily and fast. Zac woke up and saw Vanessa, practically hyperventilating.

"What's wrong?" Zac asked.

"I had a nightmare" Vanessa said breathlessly.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Zac asked.

"It was about the birth" Vanessa said.

"What about the birth?" Zac asked.

"I was in the delivery room and everything happened so fast" Vanessa said.

"Everything is okay baby. Go back to sleep" Zac said.

Vanessa lied back down and snuggled into Zac's chest as close as she could, because of her expanding bump. The couple fell asleep. A couple weeks later, Vanessa's morning sickness had stopped. But it was replaced with muscle pain, mood swings, and weight gain. One morning, Vanessa woke up and walked into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. Her bump had grown a lot in the last couple of weeks. She pulled her shirt up and put her hand on the bottom of her bump. Vanessa didn't hear Zac get up. He kissed her shoulder and put his hand on top of Vanessa's on her bump.

"Good morning baby" Zac said.

"Good morning" Vanessa said.

"How's baby girl doing today?" Zac asked.

"She's moving around a lot" Vanessa said.

"But no kicking?" Zac asked.

"No, not yet" Vanessa said.

Zac moved Vanessa so that he was standing in front of her. He leaned down and kissed her stomach, like he did every morning since Vanessa's bump had started growing.

"Hi baby girl. Daddy loves you" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"What are we doing today?" Zac asked.

"I think I want to go look for some furniture for her" Vanessa said.

"Okay" Zac said.

"But you need to leave right now. I have to pee. She's pressing against my bladder" Vanessa said pushing Zac gently out of the bathroom.

Vanessa closed the door and did her business. She came out of the bathroom and got dressed. The couple left the house. They drove to a store and parked the car. Zac looked out of the window and saw a hoard of paparazzi.

"Baby, stay in the car for a second. There are paparazzi and I don't want them trampling you" Zac said getting out of the car.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Zac closed the door. Paparazzi came over to him and started taking pictures.

"Guys, you need to leave. We want our privacy" Zac said.

"Zac, we just need a picture of Vanessa" a photographer said.

"No, you aren't going to get a picture. Please leave" Zac said.

The hoard of paparazzi left Zac. Zac sighed. He opened Vanessa's door. Vanessa looked at Zac.

"What happened?" Vanessa asked getting out of the car.

"They wanted a picture of you. I told them no and to leave you alone" Zac said.

"Oh" Vanessa said.

The couple entwined their fingers together and walked into the store. They looked around at different items. The couple then got to the cribs and started looking at different ones.

"Babe, what about this one?" Zac asked looking at a crib.

Vanessa looked at it and shook her head.

"I don't like the style of it" Vanessa said.

"Why?" Zac asked.

"Because I just don't Zac" Vanessa said hormonally.

Zac's eyes widened.

"Why don't we look at a different one?" Zac asked.

"I like this one" Vanessa said standing her ground.

"You don't think that we should look at some other ones before we settle on one?" Zac asked.

"No" Vanessa said.

"Alright. Let's just get this one" Zac said in defeat.

The couple bought the crib and loaded it into the car. They got into the car. Vanessa looked at Zac.

"Sorry about that" Vanessa said.

Zac looked at Vanessa confused, but then realized that she was having a mood swing in the store.

"Baby, it's okay" Zac said.

"No it's not. I shouldn't have been rude like that" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"It's fine sweetheart. Don't worry" Zac said.

Vanessa sighed.

"These mood swings suck" Vanessa said.

"You knew that they were going to be bad" Zac said.

"Yeah, but not this bad" Vanessa said putting her hand on her bump.

Zac continued to drive home. Once he parked his car, the couple got out and walked into the house. They walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. Vanessa put her legs in Zac's lap. Zac started rubbing his girlfriend's aching feet.

"Do you think we are going to break up when the baby is born?" Vanessa asked softly.

Zac stopped rubbing Vanessa's feet. He looked at Vanessa.

"What makes you think that?" Zac asked.

"Our relationship isn't going to be the same once she is here" Vanessa said.

"Baby, our relationship is going to be altered, but will pretty much stay the same. We will have more priorities. My feelings for you will never change. I love you no matter what" Zac said.

"I just have been thinking" Vanessa said.

"We aren't going to break up Van. I promise" Zac said putting his hand on Vanessa's bump and looking at her.

Vanessa nodded.

"We may fight and get frustrated, but I never want it to go to that point" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"Why don't you go take a nap? You need to get some rest" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Zac helped Vanessa stand up. He kissed her lips softly, but passionately.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too. Sorry that I have been in a weird mood today" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"It's alright honey. I understand" Zac said.

Vanessa sat up and got off the couch carefully. She walked upstairs and went into the bedroom and fell asleep. Zac was downstairs sitting on the couch. He leaned his head back against the wall. He was thinking about what Vanessa had said. Zac started to get scared so he decided to call his father.

"Hello?" David, Zac's father answered.

"Hey dad, it's me" Zac said walking into his office and closing the door.

"Hey, what's going on? How's Nessa feeling?" David asked.

"Everything's okay. Vanessa's feeling fine. I need some advice" Zac said.

"What's up?" David asked.

"Van and I were talking a little while ago about the future and the baby. She asked me if I thought we were going to break up once the baby is born" Zac explained.

"What did you say to that?" David asked.

"I told her that we weren't. But it just got me thinking about the future and the "what ifs". Like what if we do break up? How are we going to handle that? How is our daughter going to handle that?" Zac said.

"Zac, if you both want your relationship to work then you need to make sure that that doesn't happen. You have to reassure Nessa that nothing is going to happen. I know that she is probably hormonal and thinking about everything also. Is she scared that you are going to leave her one day?" David asked.

"I have no idea. I don't want her to think that. I would never leave her with our daughter like that" Zac said.

"All you can do is be there when she needs to talk and reassure her that nothing is going to happen" David said.

Zac sighed.

"Okay. Thanks dad" Zac said.

"No problem and if you need to talk about this more, you can always give me a call. I know you are trying to figure things out too" David said.

Zac smiled.

"Thanks dad" Zac said.

The two men hung up. There was a knock on Zac's office door. Vanessa poked her head in and smiled. Zac looked up and smiled.

"Hi beautiful. How are you feeling?" Zac asked as Vanessa walked into the office and sat down on a chair in front of the desk.

"A little bloated and swollen" Vanessa said.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Zac asked.

Vanessa smiled and shook her head.

"No" Vanessa said.

"What you said earlier really got me thinking" Zac said.

"About what?" Vanessa said putting her hand on her bump.

"About our future. Babe, I need to ask you a serious question okay?" Zac said.

"Alright" Vanessa said nervously.

"Do you think that I am going to leave you one day with the baby?" Zac asked.

Vanessa looked down. A minute later, Vanessa looked up at Zac with tears in her eyes. She choked back a sob. Zac's face softened. He stood up and walked over to his girlfriend and took her into his arms. She nodded. Zac put his hand on the back of Vanessa's head. He kissed her cheek softly. A lump formed in the back of Zac's throat. He tried to not get emotional because he wanted to be strong for Vanessa. Zac rubbed Vanessa's back soothingly. He pulled away from her.

"I will never leave you Van. I promise. You and our daughter are my life" Zac said.

"I'm scared about what's going to happen between us. I don't want the baby to break us up" Vanessa cried.

"Hey, listen to me. We are going to be fine. I love you and our daughter so much. I will always be here okay?" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Zac leaned in and kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too" Zac said.

Vanessa sniffled and wrapped her arms around Zac again. Zac kissed Vanessa's head softly. He put his hand on Vanessa's bump. A couple weeks later, Vanessa was five and a half months pregnant and very hormonal. One day she would be fine and the next she would be having severe mood swings. One day, Vanessa walked downstairs and saw Zac making coffee in the kitchen. She walked over to Zac and wrapped her arms as close as she could around him. Vanessa leaned her head on Zac's shoulder.

"Good morning honey" Zac said.

"Morning" Vanessa said.

"How are you feeling?" Zac asked.

"I just want to be close to you" Vanessa said softly.

Zac smiled. He knew that Vanessa's mood swings were temporary and helped her get through them to the best of his ability. Zac put down what he was doing and turned around and moved Vanessa closer to him. He kissed her lips softly.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

"Come on, let's go upstairs" Zac said.

The couple walked upstairs and went into their bedroom and got into bed. Vanessa snuggled into Zac's chest. Zac rubbed her back soothingly.

"So have you thought of any names for baby girl?" Zac asked.

"Sort of" Vanessa said playing with the end of Zac's shirt.

"We have to figure out what her name is going to be soon" Zac said.

"Yeah I know. I just want something simple" Vanessa said.

"I like the name Mia" Zac said.

"Mia Efron. I like it" Vanessa said.

"Do you want to keep trying to put names together or do you like that one?" Zac asked.

"I like Mia" Vanessa said.

"Then our daughter's name is Mia" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"We finally have a name for her" Vanessa said.

"Yeah" Zac said putting his hand on Vanessa's stomach.

"I think that we should have both of our families over for dinner tonight. What do you think?" Vanessa asked.

Zac smiled.

"That sounds good babe. But I don't want you to overwork yourself" Zac said.

"I feel fine" Vanessa said.

"I know you do sweetheart. I just don't want you to get worked up and do everything" Zac said.

"I will be fine" Vanessa said.

"Okay" Zac said.

Zac called both of their families and invited them over for dinner. An hour later, Vanessa was cooking in the kitchen when the doorbell rang. Zac walked to the front door and opened it. Their families greeted Zac and walked into the house. The couple and their families enjoyed each other's company. That night after their families left, Zac and Vanessa went upstairs and relaxed in bed. Vanessa emerged from the bathroom and looked at Zac.

"Zac" Vanessa said.

"Yeah baby?" Zac asked looking at his girlfriend.

"I think something is wrong" Vanessa said.

"What are you talking about?" Zac asked getting out of bed.

"I think something is wrong with the baby" Vanessa said putting her hand on her bump.

"Are you in pain?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded nervously.

"Should I call Dr. Berry or do you want to go to the emergency room?" Zac asked calmly.

"Call Dr. Berry" Vanessa said.

"Alright" Zac said dialing Dr. Berry's number.

Zac explained to Dr. Berry what was going on. A couple minutes later, Zac hung up the phone and looked at Vanessa.

"Van, she wants you to come to the hospital" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded nervously. The couple left the house. Zac drove as fast he could to the hospital. He parked his car in the emergency room lot and helped Vanessa get out of the car. A couple of nurses came to the couple with a wheelchair. Vanessa sat down in the wheelchair. The nurses wheeled Vanessa into the hospital with Zac following behind. A half an hour later, Vanessa was settled in a hospital room. Zac was holding Vanessa's hand.

"What's wrong with her?" Vanessa asked.

"I don't know sweetheart. You didn't do anything wrong" Zac said putting his free hand on Vanessa's bump.

There was a knock at the door. Dr. Berry came into the room and smiled.

"Hi guys. What's going on Vanessa?" Dr. Berry asked.

"I just feel pain in my stomach and in my back" Vanessa said putting her hand on her bump.

"Let me do an ultra sound so I can take a look" Dr. Berry said.

Dr. Berry turned on the ultrasound and waited for it to heat up. She then moved Vanessa's hospital gown above her stomach. Dr. Berry squeezed gel onto Vanessa's stomach and picked up a wand and moved the product around. She then looked at the monitor.

"What's wrong with my baby?" Vanessa asked.

"The umbilical cord is wrapped around her neck, which is causing her to suffocate" Dr. Berry said.

Vanessa looked at Zac. Zac held Vanessa's hand tighter.

"So what do we do?" Vanessa asked.

"We are going to have to deliver the baby as soon as possible" Dr. Berry said.

"But I am only five and a half months along. She will die" Vanessa said as she started to cry.

"Baby, everything is going to be okay" Zac said trying to calm his girlfriend down.

"Vanessa, if she comes out now, we will be able to control the situation" Dr. Berry said.

"I won't do it" Vanessa said standing her ground.

"Vanessa" Zac started.

"Zac, she can't come out now. It's too soon" Vanessa cried.

"Can I have a minute alone with her?" Zac asked.

"Of course" Dr. Berry said.

Dr. Berry walked out of the room. Zac looked at Vanessa.

"Sweetheart, look at me" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac with worry in her eyes.

"Dr. Berry wants us to have a healthy baby. She wouldn't tell us that the baby needs to come out unless it was an emergency, which this is" Zac said.

"I'm scared" Vanessa said breathlessly.

"I know you are baby. I am too and it's okay to be scared" Zac said.

Vanessa took a deep breath.

"So are we going to have a baby today?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded. Zac smiled.

"That's my girl. I will be right here the whole time. I promise" Zac said.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too. I'm going to go get Dr. Berry" Zac said.

Zac got up and walked out of the hospital room and came back with Dr. Berry.

"Alright, so what is the decision?" Dr. Berry asked.

"We are going to have the baby today" Vanessa said putting her hand on her bump.

"Okay. I'm going to go get the OR set up and I will be back shortly" Dr. Berry said.

Dr. Berry left the room. Zac kissed Vanessa's cheek softly.

"Should I call our families and tell them what's going on?" Zac asked.

"Don't leave me please" Vanessa said looking at Zac with tears in her eyes.

Zac smiled.

"I'm not going anywhere. Don't worry" Zac said.

An hour later, Vanessa was wheeled into the OR and was getting prepped for her C-section. Zac was changing into scrubs. Vanessa looked around the OR and saw big bright lights, sterilized medical equipment, an incubator, and other equipment that was for newborn babies. Zac came into the OR in blue scrubs and a mask. He sat down in a chair that was next to Vanessa's head. Zac kissed Vanessa's forehead softly.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

Nurses prepped Vanessa and placed equipment around the hospital bed. A nurse placed a sheet across Vanessa's neck, so that no one would see what was going on. She was given an anesthetic so that she wouldn't feel anything but still be awake. Dr. Berry came into the room.

"Vanessa, are you ready to meet your baby?" Dr. Berry asked.

"Yes" Vanessa said.

"You are going to feel pressure okay?" Dr. Berry said.

"Alright" Vanessa said groggily.

Dr. Berry started the procedure. Zac looked at Vanessa, who was going in and out of consciousness. He rubbed Vanessa's head gently.

"Are you feeling okay baby?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"I feel great" Vanessa said groggily.

Zac smiled. He kissed her forehead.

"You are so brave" Zac said.

Twenty minutes went by and the couple finally heard Dr. Berry's voice again.

"Okay, I can see the baby" Dr. Berry said.

Zac looked over the sheet and smiled.

"Can you see her?" Vanessa asked.

"Not yet" Zac said.

"Vanessa, you are going to feel some pressure. Just breathe" Dr. Berry said.

Vanessa started taking deep breaths and closed her eyes. A couple seconds later, the couple heard a cry. Vanessa and Zac looked at each other. Vanessa started to cry.

"Now that is a beautiful baby. What do you think, dad?" Dr. Berry asked holding up the baby so Zac could see.

Zac smiled and tears ran down his face. He looked down at Vanessa and kissed her head softly.

"She's beautiful" Zac said.

A couple minutes later, a nurse came over to Vanessa's head with a bundle, that held their daughter. She placed the baby onto Vanessa's chest. Vanessa smiled when she saw her daughter for the first time.

"Oh my god" Vanessa said.

"Hi Mia" Zac said.

"Vanessa, we are going to clean you up and bring you to recovery. Your daughter needs to be checked by a pediatrician" a nurse said.

"Okay" Vanessa said groggily.

Vanessa was cleaned and sewn back up. She then was rolled back into her original hospital room. Vanessa was still feeling sedated. Zac sat down in the chair that he had been sitting in previously.

"We are officially parents babe" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded incoherently. Zac smiled.

"Close your eyes baby. Get some rest. I'm so proud of you" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled and fell asleep. A couple hours later, Vanessa opened her eyes slowly and looked around the room. She had forgotten that she was in the hospital.

"Hey sleepyhead" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac.

"Mia" Vanessa started.

"Is perfectly healthy. Dr. Berry came in and told me. She needs to be in an incubator for a couple months because she was so premature" Zac explained.

Vanessa smiled.

"How long was I asleep for?" Vanessa asked.

"Only three hours" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"Can I hold her?" Vanessa asked.

"Dr. Berry said that we couldn't because she is premature. But, we can touch her through the incubator" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded sadly.

"How are you feeling?" Zac asked.

"A little out of it but I feel okay" Vanessa said.

"I called our families and told them what happened. They said that they would come visit tomorrow. They wanted you to get your rest" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled. He sat on the edge of the hospital bed and took Vanessa's hand in his.

"I love you too sweetheart. Thanks for making me a daddy" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"Thanks for making me a mommy" Vanessa said.

That night, the couple fell asleep with smiles on their faces. They were so happy that their daughter was finally here.


	10. Yes

The next morning, Vanessa opened her eyes slowly. She looked around the room and then looked down at her stomach, which was now deflated. Zac was sleeping on the couch that was next to the hospital bed. Vanessa was so happy that Mia was here but also worried because she didn't know what kind of problems were going on with her daughter. Zac turned over on the couch and opened his eyes. He looked at Vanessa and smiled.

"Hey mommy, how did you sleep?" Zac asked getting off the couch and sitting on the edge of Vanessa's hospital bed.

"Alright. I have stitches so it was hard to fall asleep. Plus I am worried about Mia" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Mia is going to be fine. She just needs to grow a little more" Zac said.

"I want to see her" Vanessa said.

"Let's call the nurse and tell her" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. Zac pressed the call button, which was on the side of Vanessa's bed. A couple minutes later, a nurse came into the room and smiled.

"What can I do for you Vanessa?" the nurse asked.

"When can I see my daughter?" Vanessa asked.

"You can see her whenever you want to. We just need to get you into a wheelchair" the nurse said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

"I will go get one and come back" the nurse said.

The nurse left the room. Zac looked at Vanessa and smiled. A couple minutes later, the nurse came back into the room with a wheelchair. She then helped Vanessa get out of bed and into the chair. The couple and the nurse left the room and went down the hall to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Mia was in ICU because she was born premature. The nurse wheeled Vanessa into the ICU and stopped at an incubator that had the name "Efron" written across it. She then left the room. Vanessa looked at her daughter and smiled. Zac pulled up a chair and sat next to Vanessa.

"She's so small" Vanessa said.

"Yeah. But she will get bigger" Zac said.

"I wonder who she is going to look like" Vanessa said.

"I hope she looks like you" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac and smiled. She leaned in and kissed Zac's lips.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too baby" Zac said.

Vanessa entwined their fingers together.

"I can't believe we are parents. I never thought it would ever happen" Vanessa said.

"Yeah" Zac said.

"I can't wait to hold her" Vanessa said looking at her daughter.

Zac smiled.

"I know. I can't wait either. We should get you back to your room. Our parents will probably be coming soon" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. Zac stood up and pushed Vanessa's wheelchair out of the ICU and down the hall to her hospital room. Zac helped his girlfriend get back into bed. He tucked her in and kissed her forehead lovingly.

"Do you think that Mia will love us?" Vanessa asked.

Zac looked at Vanessa confused.

"Of course she will love us. She has a mommy that loves her very much" Zac said.

"And a daddy that loves her too" Vanessa added.

Zac smiled.

"She's going to be loved by everyone" Zac said.

There was a knock on the door. Starla and Gina peeked into the room.

"Are you up for visitors?" Starla asked.

Vanessa smiled.

"Of course. Come on in" Vanessa said.

Starla and Gina came into the room.

"Where's the baby?" Gina asked.

"She's in ICU. She was born four months early and needs to grow a little more" Vanessa explained.

"Have you seen her?" Starla asked.

"Yeah. We just saw her" Zac said.

"She's beautiful" Vanessa said smiling.

Zac smiled.

"Why was she born so early?" Gina asked.

Zac and Vanessa explained to their mothers why Mia was born early. The mothers stayed for a little while longer until they ordered Vanessa to get some rest and left. Zac looked at Vanessa.

"You should get some rest sweetheart" Zac said.

"But I'm not tired" Vanessa whined.

"If you sleep now, morning will come faster and we will go see Mia" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"Fine. I'll go to sleep. Sleep up here with me?" Vanessa asked.

"I don't want to mess up any of the wires baby. I would if I could" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Zac leaned in and kissed Vanessa's lips softly.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

"Get some sleep" Zac said kissing Vanessa's nose.

Vanessa giggled and nodded. The couple fell asleep. The next morning, Vanessa woke up and saw Zac sleeping. She smiled. Zac started moving around on the couch until he finally opened his eyes. He looked at Vanessa.

"Good morning" Zac said.

"Good morning" Vanessa said.

"Do you want to go see Mia?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"I was waiting for you to wake up. I didn't want to go by myself" Vanessa said.

"And you shouldn't go by yourself. You have stitches that can't be messed around with" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. Zac got off the couch and walked over to the bed and kissed Vanessa's lips. He helped Vanessa get into the wheelchair and pushed it out of the room to ICU. The couple went to Mia's incubator and looked at their daughter's body.

"Good morning baby girl" Vanessa said softly.

The couple spent some time in ICU with Mia until they decided that they should go back to Vanessa's room. Zac pushed Vanessa's wheelchair back into her hospital room and was met by Dr. Berry.

"Hi guys. You are just in time. I'm going to discharge you Vanessa" Dr. Berry said.

"What about Mia?" Vanessa asked immediately.

"Mia needs to stay until she gains enough weight and her organs develop more" Dr. Berry said.

Vanessa sighed sadly. Zac put his hand on Vanessa's shoulder.

"But we can still come back and see her right?" Zac asked.

"Of course. She's your child" Dr. Berry said.

The couple smiled at the sound of that. Zac helped Vanessa get back into bed. Dr. Berry did a head-to-toe exam.

"Alright Vanessa. I will see you soon" Dr. Berry said.

"See you soon" Vanessa said.

Vanessa changed out of her hospital gown and into some comfortable clothes. The couple then walked by the ICU and waved goodbye to their daughter and left the hospital room. When they arrived home, the couple walked into the living room.

"When do you go back to work?" Vanessa asked.

"I haven't decided yet. Now that Mia was born early and that she is in the hospital, I want to be here. I am her father and I need to be here" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. She leaned over and kissed Zac's lips.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too" Zac said.

"Will it be a problem if you push back your filming time?" Vanessa asked.

"No. I'm going to call my director and explain what is going on" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"We need to figure out how Mia is going to be able to see you when you are filming" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"I will have breaks between filming. You guys can come to me or I can come home" Zac said.

"I just don't want you to miss anything important" Vanessa said.

"I know and I hope I don't" Zac said.

"Will you have a lot of breaks?" Vanessa asked.

"I don't know yet baby. Once I find out, I will let you know" Zac said.

Vanessa sighed.

"Do you think she's going to be okay?" Vanessa asked.

"She's going to be fine. You need to stop worrying about it. You are going to drive yourself crazy" Zac said.

"It's hard not to think about" Vanessa said.

"I know it is but you can't do that to yourself" Zac said.

Vanessa sighed. She put her hand on her deflated stomach and closed her eyes. Zac leaned over and kissed her forehead softly.

"Everything is going to be okay baby. You can't stress yourself out like this" Zac said.

"I'm just worried about her" Vanessa said as tears fell from her eyes.

"I know you are sweetheart. But worrying so much won't solve anything" Zac said softly as he wiped the tears that were streaming down her face.

"It's just scary not knowing what's going to happen. This is our first baby and something bad happened" Vanessa said.

"We have to be strong for her Nessa" Zac said.

"I don't know if I can" Vanessa said.

"I know you can. That's the only way we are going to get through this" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I think I'm going to go to bed" Vanessa said.

"Alright" Zac said kissing Vanessa's lips.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too. Get some sleep" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. She walked out of the living room and went upstairs. Vanessa got into bed and fell asleep. The next morning, Vanessa woke up and saw Zac not in bed. She got up and walked downstairs and into Zac's office. Vanessa saw Zac looking at his computer.

"Did you come to bed last night?" Vanessa asked.

"No" Zac said.

"Why not?" Vanessa asked.

"I had work to do" Zac said.

Vanessa walked over to Zac and sat on his lap.

"You need to sleep too Zac. It's not good to stay up all night like that" Vanessa said.

"I'm fine. You need sleep more than I do" Zac said.

"When do you want to go to the hospital today?" Vanessa asked.

"Whenever you want to" Zac said.

"Zac" Vanessa said.

Zac looked away from the computer at Vanessa.

"Don't be strong for me. You need to deal with this too. I know you want to be the strong one because you are a man, but we need to go through this together. No secrets or hidden feelings" Vanessa said.

Zac bit his lip and looked at Vanessa.

"I just want her to be okay. Like you said last night, she is our first child and she has a problem. It's hard to deal with" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. Zac took Vanessa's hand in his.

"I want to be the strong one because I know that you feel worse than I do. You naturally worry about things. You always have. I don't want you to feel like you are alone in this" Zac said.

Vanessa had tears running down her face. Zac was right. She was worried and she knew that nothing was going to stop her from worrying. Vanessa didn't realize that Zac had gotten up and wrapped his arms around her. He rubbed her back soothingly as she cried into his chest. Five minutes later, Vanessa's cries turned into whimpers and eventually turned into sniffles. Vanessa looked up at her boyfriend.

"Are you feeling better?" Zac asked.

"A little bit" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled slightly.

"Let's let this conversation marinate in our minds for a little while and come back to it later okay?" Zac said.

"Marinate?" Vanessa asked looking at her boyfriend.

"Let what we have said, replay in our heads and then we can talk about it later. Better?" Zac asked.

Vanessa smiled.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too sweetheart" Zac said kissing her forehead softly.

"So do you want to go see Mia?" Vanessa asked.

"Okay. Come on" Zac said taking Vanessa's hand and walking out of the room.

The couple drove to the hospital and parked their car. They saw paparazzi camped out in front of the entrance to the hospital. Vanessa looked at Zac.

"Why can't they just leave us alone?" Vanessa asked as she put the hood of her sweatshirt over her head.

"It just comes with the territory baby. Come on, let's go see our daughter" Zac said.

The couple got out of the car and started walking to the entrance of the hospital. Paparazzi surrounded them and yelled different types of questions at the couple. Vanessa squeezed Zac's hand. Zac and Vanessa walked into the hospital and sighed.

"Are you okay?" Zac asked.

"Yeah, I wish they would stop for one day" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Don't pay any attention to them" Zac said.

The couple went upstairs to the ICU and smiled at the receptionist as they walked into the room where the incubators were lined up. Zac and Vanessa walked over to the incubator that held Mia and sat down on the chairs that were in front of it.

"Hi baby girl. I love you" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Hi sweetheart. It's daddy. I love you" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. A nurse came into the room and smiled.

"Hi guys, I'm Nicole. I am the nurse that has been assigned to Mia's case" Nicole said.

"Hi" the couple said shaking the nurse's hand.

"How is she doing today?" Vanessa asked.

"She's okay. She's stable which is good. We are just concerned with her weight gain" Nicole said.

"Is she not gaining weight?" Zac asked.

"She's gaining a little bit but not as much as we would like" Nicole said.

"So what do we do about that?" Vanessa asked.

"We usually suggest for mother's to breastfeed" Nicole said.

"But isn't she connected to different machine's?" Zac asked.

"Yes, but we can use the portable ones that we have available. Do you want to try it and see if it works?" Nicole asked.

Vanessa looked at Zac. Zac nodded and smiled. Vanessa looked back at the nurse.

"I'll try it and see if it works. What is the difference between formula and breast milk?" Vanessa asked.

"Breast milk has a lot more vitamins and nutritional qualities that you can't get from formula. It's a lot healthier" Nicole said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Nicole set up the portable machines and connected them to Mia. She then carefully picked up Mia from her incubator and set her into Vanessa's arms. Zac smiled.

"How does it feel?" Zac asked.

Vanessa smiled.

"It finally feels like I'm a mom" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled and kissed her head softly. Nicole taught Vanessa how to breast feed. Vanessa watched Mia latch onto her breast and enjoy her meal. She smiled.

"Does it hurt?" Zac asked.

"No, it feels weird though" Vanessa said.

"A good kind of weird or bad?" Zac asked.

"A good kind" Vanessa said looking down at her daughter.

Vanessa put her hand on Mia's head and kissed it softly. Tears ran down Vanessa's cheeks. She wiped them away with her free hand.

"Sorry" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled and kissed Vanessa's cheek.

"Don't be. I know this is overwhelming" Zac said.

Vanessa looked down at Mia.

"She has your eyes" Vanessa said.

"Yeah, and she has your hair" Zac said.

"Now that I am holding her I don't want to put her down" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Do you feel like a mommy now?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"Yes. I can't believe she was living inside of me" Vanessa said.

"Yeah, it's crazy" Zac said.

Mia pulled away from Vanessa. Vanessa picked Mia up and gently patted her back until she burped.

"Can Zac hold her?" Vanessa asked.

Nicole looked at the couple and smiled.

"Of course. Just be careful handing her off to him" Nicole said.

Vanessa carefully put Mia into Zac's arms. Zac looked down at his daughter and smiled.

"How does it feel baby?" Vanessa asked as she adjusted her shirt to it's previous place.

Zac looked up and smiled at his girlfriend.

"Amazing" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. The couple held their daughter for a while until they decided to go home. That night, Vanessa walked into Zac's office and saw him on his computer.

"What are you doing?" Vanessa asked.

"Just finishing some things up. What are you up to?" Zac asked.

"Nothing. Do you think she's going to come home soon?" Vanessa asked.

"I hope so baby. Hopefully this breastfeeding method will help her gain some weight" Zac said.

"Hopefully. Have you talked to your parents?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah, they were asking about her and when they could come see her. I just think that we should be the only ones that see her right now. Once she's out of the hospital and at home, then our families could come see her" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I agree. Are you going to back to therapy?" Vanessa asked softly.

Zac looked at Vanessa.

"I feel like I should. With all of this stuff going on, there is a lot of stuff swirling around in my head" Zac said.

"Even though you are doing so well, I just want you to maintain this state and not fall back to what you were doing before" Vanessa said.

"I agree with you. I think that Mia is my motivation to stay stable. Both of you are" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"Would you want to go with me?" Zac asked.

Vanessa looked at her boyfriend confused.

"I want you to have a better understanding of where I'm coming from and therapy may give us that opportunity. What do you think?" Zac asked.

"I want to be able to help you in any way I can. I will always support you no matter what" Vanessa said.

"So that's a yes?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"Yes" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled. He kissed Vanessa's lips softly but passionately. He knew that everything was going to go up from there.


	11. Couple's Therapy

The couple spent the next couple of days going to the hospital in the morning and not coming back until it was dark. Zac had made an appointment with a therapist that his rehab facility had recommended that he go see. One night, Vanessa was in Mia's room folding clothes that she had just washed. Zac walked into the room and smiled. He walked up behind her and kissed her neck softly. Vanessa leaned into his touch and smiled. She turned around and looked at her boyfriend.

"How are you feeling about tomorrow?" Vanessa asked.

"I'm a little anxious but it's manageable" Zac said.

"Why are you feeling like that?" Vanessa asked.

"I think because I am going to be more open than I usually am" Zac said.

"I will be right by your side. I want us to go through this together" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded and smiled.

"Thank you for being so supportive with all of this stuff" Zac said.

Vanessa kissed Zac's cheek.

"I don't want you to have to deal with this by yourself. I want to be able to help you in any way that I can" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"How are you feeling about tomorrow?" Zac asked.

"I feel a little nervous but I know that everything's going to be okay" Vanessa said entwining their fingers together.

Zac nodded. The next morning, Vanessa woke up and snuggled into Zac's chest. She breathed in his scent and smiled. Vanessa kissed Zac's neck softly and put her hand on the back of his head.

"Baby, we need to get up" Vanessa said.

"Mm. Five more minutes baby please" Zac said.

"Zachary David Alexander Efron get your cute butt out of bed and into the shower" Vanessa said.

Zac opened his eyes slowly. Vanessa smiled.

"Good morning sunshine" Vanessa said kissing Zac's lips.

"Good morning" Zac said.

"We need to get up" Vanessa said.

The couple got out of bed and took a shower. Twenty minutes later, the couple was walking out the door. Zac drove to the therapist's office and parked his car. The couple walked into the office. Zac checked in and sat next to Vanessa. A couple minutes later, a young woman that was probably in her mid-thirties came into the room.

"Zac?" the woman called.

The couple stood up and entwined their fingers together. They walked toward the woman and followed her into an office.

"I'm Anna. Make yourselves comfortable" Anna said.

The couple sat down on a couch that was in front of a chair.

"I understand that this is your first therapy session since you have been out of rehab Zac" Anna said.

"Yes it is" Zac said.

"Why did you make the decision to continue your therapy outside of rehab?" Anna asked.

"I feel like I have a lot of things that I need to work on in my life and things that I want to improve on in my relationship with my girlfriend, Vanessa" Zac explained.

"I'm assuming you are Vanessa" Anna said looking at Vanessa.

Vanessa smiled.

"Yes" Vanessa said.

"What kind of things do you want to work on within yourself?" Anna asked.

"I want to be more open and not bottle things up" Zac said.

"What about with your relationship with Vanessa?" Anna asked.

"I want to be able to be more honest and open with her. I don't want to hide what I'm feeling" Zac said.

"Alright. Can we start from the beginning? Zac, what led you to the decision of wanting to be more open with Vanessa?" Anna asked.

"In the past, I have always been keeping things to myself. I didn't treat Vanessa the way that she deserved to be treated" Zac said.

Vanessa entwined her fingers with Zac's.

"When you say that you didn't treat Vanessa the way she deserved to be treated, what does that entail?" Anna asked.

"I'm known all over the world. I have cameras and people following me all the time. When you are dating someone, it's hard to deal with all of the media and attention. Cameras were in her face all the time and there was a point where she didn't want to leave the house because she didn't want people following us. I don't care if cameras are in my face, but when it comes to her, she doesn't deserve that. I didn't tell her how I felt about certain things and she always begged me to tell her what was wrong but I would always brush it off" Zac said.

Tears ran down Vanessa's cheeks.

"Vanessa, was this hard for you?" Anna asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"We broke up and it was hard to get used to it again and try to ignore it. He has become more open but I know that with more therapy, that he could be even more open" Vanessa said.

"Now that we have a baby together, I think that I need to step up my game and really be able to be honest with her and tell her how I'm feeling" Zac said.

Anna nodded.

"How old is your child?" Anna asked.

"Two weeks old and she is in ICU because she was born so prematurely" Zac said.

"Oh wow. So you have a little one. I think that we can work on getting you to the point of always being open and honest with Vanessa. I think that it's good that you are thinking about your baby's life in this situation" Anna said.

The couple nodded.

"I think that it's good that you want be honest with me for Mia's sake" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled. He faced Vanessa and looked at her directly in the eye.

"I want us to be a family. I want to work hard on this so that when Mia is older, she can see that you need to be honest and open with people for them to understand where you are coming from and how you are feeling" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"I think that's a great goal baby. I want to help you to get to that point too" Vanessa said.

"Zac, will you let Vanessa help you get to your goal?" Anna asked.

Vanessa looked at her boyfriend.

"Yes" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. The couple's therapy session ended and they walked out of the office and to the parking lot. Zac stopped walking and hugged Vanessa and kissed her head softly.

"I love you Van. So much" Zac said.

"I love you too Zac. I'm glad that I came with you" Vanessa said.

Vanessa leaned in and kissed Zac's lips softly.

"Everything I said was true. I want us to be a family. Not just a couple who has a child" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I can't wait to see what the future holds" Vanessa said.

"Do you want to go see Mia?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"If you want to" Vanessa said.

"I always want to see her" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled and leaned in and kissed Zac's lips again.

"Let's go" Vanessa said.

The couple continued to walk to the car and got in. Zac drove to the hospital and parked his car. Zac and Vanessa got out of the car and walked into the hospital with her fingers entwined. They went upstairs to the ICU and walked over to Mia's incubator.

"Hi baby. Mommy's here" Vanessa said looking at her daughter.

Nicole walked in and smiled.

"Hi guys" Nicole said.

"Hi Nicole, how is Mia doing today?" Vanessa asked.

"She's doing well. Do you want to hold her?" Nicole asked.

"Yes please" Vanessa said.

"Alright, let me get her set up" Nicole said.

Nicole connected Mia to the portable monitors and lifted her out of the incubator. She placed Mia into Vanessa's arms carefully. Nicole left the room. Zac sat down in a chair that was next to Vanessa. He leaned down and kissed Mia's head.

"Love you baby girl" Zac whispered.

Vanessa smiled.

"She's starting to look like you" Vanessa said.

"That's always a good thing since I am her father" Zac said.

Vanessa giggled.

"She looks like she has grown a little bit" Vanessa said.

"Yeah, maybe the breast milk is helping" Zac said.

"I hope so" Vanessa said.

Vanessa pulled down her shirt and placed Mia to her breast and watched her latch on. Mia then ate her morning meal.

"Does it still feel weird when you breastfeed?" Zac asked.

"It's not as bad as the first time. Sometimes she will tug too hard" Vanessa said looking at her daughter.

"It will get better" Zac said.

Mia pulled away from Vanessa.

"Do you want to burp her?" Vanessa asked.

Zac smiled and nodded. He put his arms out and Vanessa placed their daughter into them. Zac kissed Mia's head softly. He put a burp cloth over his shoulder and gently patted his daughter's back. Zac did this until he heard Mia burp. He smiled when she finally did.

"All better" Zac said looking at Mia.

Vanessa smiled as she watched Zac and Mia interact.

"You are a great daddy baby" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"You are a great mommy" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"I finally feel like a daddy now that I get to hold her" Zac said.

"I'm glad" Vanessa said.

Zac looked at Mia in his arms. He smiled when he saw his daughter's eyes closing. Zac stood up and carefully placed Mia into her incubator. The couple had called Nicole and she had reconnected Mia to her monitors. Zac and Vanessa left the hospital and went home. The couple walked into the house and went into the living room and sat down on the couch.

"Do you feel better after going to therapy today?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah. I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders. What about you?" Zac asked.

"I feel like I was able to get a better understanding of where you are coming from and that we know what to work on in our relationship" Vanessa said.

"I want us to be able to communicate better. We need to be able to show Mia that people need to communicate with each other to understand how the other person feels" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded. She leaned her head against Zac's chest.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too sweetheart" Zac said kissing Vanessa's forehead softly.

"Do you think that Mia is going to be released soon?" Vanessa asked.

"I hope so baby. I want her to come home and be with us" Zac said as Vanessa snuggled into his arms.

"I hate that she's in the hospital all day long and has to have tubes sticking out of her" Vanessa said.

"She's growing though and that's what we want. When she gets a little bigger, hopefully we can bring her home" Zac said.

"Yeah. It just sucks that every time we want to hold her, we have to bring all of her monitors with her. It doesn't even feel like we are holding our baby. It feels like we are holding a machine instead" Vanessa said as she teared up.

Zac rubbed Vanessa's back in soothing circles. He kissed her head softly.

"I know sweetheart. But, she is getting better. We are going to be able to bring her home soon and then everything will be okay" Zac said wiping Vanessa's tears away.

Vanessa sighed.

"Come on, you need some sleep. You haven't been sleeping" Zac said.

"How do you know?" Vanessa asked.

"I know you Nessa. I know that when you are worried, you can't stop" Zac said.

Vanessa sniffled.

"Come on, let's go upstairs so you can get some sleep okay?" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

The couple got off the couch and walked upstairs. Vanessa got into bed and fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. The Efron's knew that life with a baby would be hard, but they never expected it to be this hard.


	12. What The Future Holds

The next couple of weeks had gone by fast. Zac and Vanessa were settling into a routine of working in the morning and going to the hospital to see Mia at night. One afternoon, Zac opened the front door and walked into the house. He walked into the kitchen and saw Vanessa making a sandwich for herself. Zac kissed Vanessa's cheek softly. He pulled his hand from behind his back and brought it in front of himself. Zac held a dozen roses for Vanessa.

"Baby, they are beautiful" Vanessa said kissing Zac's lips.

Zac smiled and kissed her back.

"Happy Anniversary sweetheart" Zac said.

"Anniversary? Oh my god. I forgot" Vanessa said looking at her boyfriend with shock in her eyes.

"Don't worry about it" Zac said.

"How did I forget?" Vanessa asked putting her hand on her forehead.

"You have been busy with other things" Zac said.

"Happy Anniversary baby" Vanessa said kissing Zac's lips.

"We have gone through a lot this year" Zac said.

"I know. It doesn't feel like a year has passed" Vanessa said.

"I love you" Zac said.

"I love you too" Vanessa said.

"This year has been amazing. You gave me my life back and a beautiful baby girl. Don't freak out when I do this okay?" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac confused. Zac pulled out a box from his back pocket. He opened it.

"Vanessa, you have been my world since the day we met. I love you so much and couldn't see my life without you or Mia. We have been through so much together and it has made us stronger. You are the most beautiful woman that I have ever laid my eyes on and I never want our love to end. This ring, is not an engagement ring. This is a promise ring. I promise you that one day we will get married and we make lots of babies" Zac started.

Vanessa giggled at the thought of having more children with Zac.

"I will do my best to be the husband you deserve and the best father to our little girl. You make me the happiest man alive. So Vanessa, will you take this ring?" Zac asked.

Vanessa smiled and nodded. Zac slipped the ring onto Vanessa's finger. Vanessa hugged Zac tightly and kissed his lips passionately.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at the ring.

"It's beautiful Zac" Vanessa said.

"I'm glad you like it" Zac said.

"How long have you been planning this?" Vanessa asked.

"Since Mia was born. I didn't tell anyone. You deserve the world and I want to give that to you" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled.

"I like that it's not an engagement ring. It suits our situation" Vanessa said.

Zac nodded.

"I didn't want to propose yet because I knew that our relationship wasn't ready for it yet. I have to work a little more on myself before I do that" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I'm glad that you didn't put yourself in a situation that you weren't ready for" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled. Vanessa leaned in and kissed Zac's lips.

"I also have another surprise but I can't tell you until later" Zac said.

"What is it?" Vanessa asked.

"Can't tell you. My lips are sealed" Zac said.

"Zac" Vanessa whined.

"Van" Zac whined back.

"Please tell me" Vanessa said.

"No, it's a surprise" Zac said.

"Fine" Vanessa said.

A couple hours later, the couple drove to the hospital to go visit Mia. Zac parked his car in the parking lot and the couple walked into the hospital and went upstairs to the ICU. Zac and Vanessa walked past the desk and went to the incubator that was labeled Efron. Vanessa saw that Mia was not in the incubator. Her eyes widened.

"Zac, she's not here" Vanessa said not looking at Zac.

"What do you mean she isn't here? I see her just fine" Zac said.

Vanessa turned around and her jaw dropped. Zac was holding Mia in his arms. She no longer had monitors connected to her and all the wires that she had once had were gone. Zac smiled at Vanessa's reaction.

"What's going on?" Vanessa asked.

"This morning, Nicole called and told me that Mia was going to be released. So I thought it would be a perfect day to give you the ring and then surprise you with Mia" Zac said.

"She's going to come home?" Vanessa asked.

Zac nodded.

"She's coming home" Zac said.

Vanessa broke down. She cried like she had never cried before. Zac smiled and walked over to his girlfriend. He kissed her cheek softly.

"Are these happy tears baby?" Zac asked.

Vanessa nodded.

"I'm in complete shock" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Here, hold your daughter for the first time" Zac said putting Mia into Vanessa's arms.

Vanessa looked down at her daughter.

"The first time without wires or machines" Vanessa corrected.

Zac stood back and watched the mother-daughter duo interact. Vanessa was smiling from ear to ear.

"So I'm taking it you love your surprise?" Zac asked.

Vanessa looked at Zac with tears in her eyes.

"This is the best day of my whole life. I love you Zac" Vanessa cried.

Zac smiled.

"I love you too. Let's take her home" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

The couple left the hospital and drove home. Zac parked the car in the driveway and looked into the backseat.

"She's asleep" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

"Are you ready for this?" Zac asked.

Vanessa smiled.

"I'm more than ready" Vanessa said.

The couple got out of the car. Vanessa walked to the backseat and carried Mia's car seat out of the car. The couple walked into the house. Vanessa set Mia's car seat down and unbuckled the infant. She picked Mia up and carried her to the living room and sat down on the couch. Zac sat next to her and smiled.

"I can't believe she's here" Vanessa said.

Zac kissed Vanessa's cheek softly. Mia started to cry. The couple looked down at their daughter. Vanessa picked Mia up and rubbed her back soothingly.

"Sh..baby it's okay. Mommy's got you" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

Mia's cries turned into whimpers and then eventually stopped.

"When do you want our parents to come over and meet her?" Zac asked.

"Can we invite them over tomorrow? I want us to spend her first day home as a family" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled at the sound of the word "family".

"Of course we can" Zac said.

Vanessa looked down at Mia and smiled.

"I'm so happy you are home baby girl" Vanessa said kissing Mia's head softly.

Mia started to whine.

"I think she's trying to tell you that her daddy needs to have some time with her too" Zac said.

Vanessa smiled. She placed Mia into Zac's arms. Zac looked at his daughter and smiled.

"It's crazy that a month ago, it was just the two of us and now there is a third person living in our house" Zac said.

"Yeah" Vanessa said.

"I decided to take a year off of work" Zac abruptly.

Vanessa looked at Zac.

"What are you talking about?" Vanessa asked.

"I don't want Mia to live the first year of her life with me in and out of the picture. She deserves to have her dad around for all of her firsts. If I left, I would probably miss her first word, steps, solid food, and so many other things that I would regret missing" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac.

"Are you sure?" Vanessa asked.

"Absolutely. I don't want to miss anything" Zac said.

"Can we do that?" Vanessa asked.

"I have money saved" Zac said.

"Okay" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled and winked at Vanessa.

"I'm glad that you want to do that for her" Vanessa said.

"For us, as a family" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I never want to lose you again and I don't want to ever lose her" Zac said.

Vanessa looked at Zac.

"I know that it won't be easy to explain to Mia why you aren't here in the future but I'm glad that you want to be there as much as you can" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"You both mean the world to me and I never want to risk losing you again and potentially my daughter" Zac said.

"I never want that to happen" Vanessa said.

"I'm going to do my best and make sure that I'm here when you need me to be" Zac said.

Vanessa nodded.

"I love you" Vanessa said.

"I love you too sweetheart" Zac said.

Vanessa leaned over and kissed Zac's lips softly. Mia started to cry. Vanessa looked at her daughter and smiled. She leaned over and kissed Mia's head softly.

"I think you need a diaper change" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Do you want me to do it?" Zac asked.

Vanessa looked at her boyfriend and smiled.

"No, I can do it" Vanessa said taking Mia out of Zac's arms.

Vanessa carried Mia upstairs and quickly changed her diaper. She then came downstairs and went back into the living room.

"She's all better" Vanessa said.

Zac smiled.

"Where do you see yourself in five years?" Zac asked randomly.

Vanessa looked at Zac confused.

"What?" Vanessa asked.

"Where do you see yourself in five years?" Zac repeated.

Vanessa smiled and sat down next to Zac. She looked down at Mia and smiled. Vanessa then looked up at her boyfriend again.

"I see myself married, hopefully and with a couple more kids. I see myself working on a couple of movies" Vanessa said.

"Well, I know you will be married before that five year mark. The kids part we can work on after we get married. I think we are going to have our hands full with this one" Zac said kissing Mia's head.

"Where do you see yourself in five years?" Vanessa asked.

"I see myself married to you. I probably would be slowing down on work because we have babies on the way" Zac said with a smile on his face.

Vanessa smiled.

"Babies? Like twins?" Vanessa asked.

"I don't know. We will see when the time comes" Zac said.

The couple talked about their future for the rest of the day. They couldn't wait to spend the rest of their lives with each other.


End file.
